Tuesday, December 19, 2006

What is it like to be a Black Belt?

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What is it like to be a Black Belt?

I recently received my Shodan (first Black Belt) and I’m very thrilled about doing so…

It’s been nearly 4 years of twice a week training as well as practicing at home and sometimes at work.

Even though I’m 49 years old, my body has responded positively to the unnatural movements associated with Shotokan Karate and it’s much stronger and leaner for one thing and slightly more flexible for another…although some things will never change.

My mental abilities of concentration and memory have also improved, as well as my self consciousness of standing out and performing in a room full of people.

So, for me reaching this level of expertise has been very gratifying in so many ways.

For others who achieve their Black Belt, it means they have simply reached the end…

…while still others feel it is a first step and that they are just at the beginning their journey.

To me, it is simply a signpost, pointing the right direction I should follow and signifying that I’m on the right path.

An individual won’t live long enough to know everything there is to know about Karate, not because the movements can’t be mastered, but rather because it is a journey of self discovery…

…and what a person discovers is the human spirit.

Once discovered, the traveler is awe struck and humbled at the potentiality that lies there…

…more importantly, one discovers that it has always been there for them if they had simply paid attention to it.

I encourage everyone to continue their journey along their chosen path of Martial Arts or spiritual enlightenment, to discover for themselves, the precious gift the universe has afforded us as human beings…


Happy Holidays

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RJF