Stories of the Black Belts is unfortunately only a partial story. It’s partial because I don’t have all of the thousands of Black Belts we have trained since 1995 in here and more importantly because it’s only a snapshot. It’s just one moment in time where each Black Belt – as a requirement to become a first degree (or second or third degree or higher) Black Belt needed to take a moment and write an essay about “What Karate Means To Me”. While many of these Black Belts are still training and I know their current story, in the last two and a half decades I would love to know what all of their “now” stories are. Actually I do know many of their successes but it’s hard to get the practicing lawyer or the M.D., or one of the entrepreneurs to stop for a minute and write an essay for our book… But we’re going to add some in future additions…
Nevertheless, in the pages here are, I feel, inspiring and motivating stories about students who started on the martial arts journey as young as 3 years old and some as old as 93. Most began so they could get stronger, gain discipline, build confidence or even learn to defend themselves – the primary reasons students enter the dojang (the Korean word for martial arts school). Yet you’ll see in their essays that they received much more than this.
My instructor told a story about his instructor’s instructor receiving a candle and a bar of soap from his instructor. The candle was to signify that as the instructor gave knowledge (represented by the light) that they were sacrificing themselves (signified by the candle getting used up and shrinking). The bar of soap was a reminder to keep the mind clean and focused. To me this book and seeing the Stories of the Black Belts is a way to rebuild the candle and focus the mind on what matters because of what the students create out of what we do.
My hope is reading some of these stories will inspire you on your next journey with us in martial arts or to whatever great successes are next!
