I am very interested in the Way. The Way is the path that one follows in life as they perfect their craft. However, I am not just interested in the Way of Aikido, but any Way that people follow and dedicate their lives to. I love hearing or talking to people who are passionate about what they do. I wish there was some type of show where famous or well known martial artists (or anyone who follows the Way for that matter) could be interviewed and they would talk frankly about their Way. Unfortunately there isn't anything like that right now that I know of.
The closest thing to that is a podcast/radio show called The Treatment on KCRW. In The Treatment, host Elvis Mitchell interviews influential people in the entertainment industry, but this isn't your normal Q & A format where the person just comes on and plugs their current films or projects. Somehow Elvis Mitchell gets them to talk in depth about themselves but also about the Way of their craft and it is eerily similar to what we go through following the Way of martial arts. They have the same trials and tribulations as we do.
In the Book of Five Rings, Miyamoto Musashi says that to master the Way of swordsmanship is to master all Ways. To better understand our own process or journey as martial artists, it is sometimes easier to look at it from another or different perspective. There is a Buddhist saying, "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear." What this means is that when we are open and willing, everything and every person can be our teacher. I have learned something from every one of the programs I have listened to on The Treatment even when I didn't like the person being interviewed or wasn't interested in the topic.
The Treatment is broadcast live on Wednesday afternoons at 2:30 PM on KCRW and is also available for free download via podcast on itunes. If you are interested, please follow this link. http://www.kcrw.com/news-culture/shows/the-treatment