A few years ago I went to a birthday party at One Martial Arts. There we played many of karate games. We also broke boards and ate pizza. That’s when I decided I wanted to start karate. After six years of interesting, fun, creative, hard sweatiness, I became dedicated to self-motivating sport. To continue karate is to continue life.
Karate was the beginning of a new life. It was very nerve wracking before I got into the sport because I didn’t know many people or any of the curriculum. I made new friends and kept the ones that helped me get into karate. Having friends made me become more confident with what I was learning. Karate was very hard and dizzying; it could be confusing, but as I overcame this I continued training and liked it more. I got better at moving fluidly, as if I were water, and all of the moves started to come into one big picture. Everything got more fun as belt colors began to change, but it also got harder as the friends who started with me left and the training pushed me to find my own place in the martial arts world.
I continued karate because I was dedicated. Sometimes I didn’t like it because as the moves got more advanced, it was hard for me to keep up. I felt like I wanted to quit, but there was something inside me that wouldn’t let the life go. Because karate was so in control, I had to try to get better. I enjoyed it more after I started to practice more at home and at private lessons. I realized karate was my thing. Karate became more of a life to me than a sport.
Karate can be difficult, but I always try to work through the pain and challenges the best that I can. It keeps me going and keeps me upbeat even when I don’t want to attend. When I don’t want to attend I go anyway, so I can learn and teach. I gained the privilege of teaching others as I got better. Teaching taught me greater confidence and it has made me the person I am today. Karate has definitely shaped my life so that I can be successful. I will be able to help and contribute to others’ lives. Continuing to volunteer by teaching the little people skills in the martial arts is one contribution I make now. It also helps me to relearn my curriculum. To teach is to learn it twice. I have learned to sacrifice things I really enjoy, like play practices, to go to karate, which is more important.
Karate influences me to do my best and help others. It makes me feel like an influence to the people I help. The little people I teach look up to me as an influence and a hero, but I also have the instructors to look up to. Before I learned from them, I just cut my losses when I failed and went on to something else, but now I try to succeed instead of planning to fail, and if I fail, I try to get better.
One Martial Arts has become my family over the years, and also a second home. If I needed someplace to go to clear my mind and release my stress I would go to karate to make me feel better. Having more people that I can rely on makes me feel good so I know that there will be people in my One Martial Arts family that will help me but also my friends and family can help me too. I enjoy my One Martial arts family because there is always someone to talk to.