Getting older is an adventure, not a problem. — Betty Friedan
My feelings included a unique combination of pride, nervousness and intrigue as I surveyed the three black belt candidates about to test. The first was Hawkeye, a lanky, athletic, 15-year-old boy who has been a Taekwondo student since around third grade and is gifted enough to have recently begun gymnastics training. The second was Cecilia, a young woman from Mexico who is a veterinary medicine student at a local university. The third was Ramona, a 62-year old woman who only began her Taekwondo training three-and-a-half years ago as a new adventure following her retirement from her job — as a pilot flying wide-body jets around the world for a large commercial airline.
The pride I felt speaks for itself. I am always proud of students of any stripe who train long enough and with enough diligence to reach the milestone of a black belt test.
An Unlikely Master 
Recent comments