HOW MY PARENTS SUPPORT MY BLACK BELT
Stephen Milowe
Black Belt Essay
Kim’s Martial Arts
October 22, 2005
Stephen Milowe
October 22, 2005
Black Belt Essay
Kim’s Martial Arts
HOW MY PARENTS SUPPORT MY BLACK BELT
My Martial Arts Beginning
Six years ago my mom and grandmother first considered martial arts for me
because it involved both mind and body. It would help me keep fit and be aware of my
physical abilities and limits, but would also involve my mind. My mom took me to the
karate place at Red Hill, but we both hated it. It was too noisy and wild. My mom asked
friends and neighbors about different schools. June Lee, Robbie Justice’s mom, and
Sahar Demos, whose son Alex Demos studied with Master Kim, both recommended the
Do Jang. When we met Master Kim, we knew we were at the right place.
I really liked having private lessons with Master Kim when I started. When I
started classes, the Tiny Tiger classes I went to had just a few kids so it was really easy to
learn. A big class might have eight kids, and then Master Johnson would help out. I miss
Master Johnson. My mom encouraged a friendly competition with Nicholas, another of
the Tiny Tigers. Moving up from the Tiny Tigers was a big thing for me at the time.
Studying
Studying used to make me nervous when I did it in front of people but my parents
helped me with that. My mom bought a book that described all of the moves, but she
didn’t know what the words meant I was supposed to do, and the turns confused her. She
has trouble telling right from left, and it is even harder when she is watching someone
else and telling them what to do. My mom would read the move and I would try to do it
but I would get lost. We tried to practice anyway and usually we remembered enough
from class to figure it out, eventually.
We also asked Robbie Justice, a boy with a higher belt, who was my sister’s
friend, to help me learn my forms. Robbie told me that Master Johnson had advised that
he learn a form forward and backward to really understand how it worked. I learned the
first three forms that way. Later we got the video. That was much better, but sometimes
we got confused because the angle changes for the slower demonstration of the forms and
hand basics.
My parents talked my neighbor, Carly, into trying tae kwon do so that I would
have a friend to go to class with. We were able to carpool together then, and I had a
friend in class. When the classes were really wild and no one was listening, I knew that if
Carly was there, at least one other person would be paying attention and trying to learn
tae kwon do.
Some of my other friends that joined and quit are David Korst, Ryan Meagher,
and Darby Radley. My sister’s friend Molly Owens has a little brother named Oliver
who joined because of me. He used to watch me practice at the sidelines at softball
games. Some friends I’ve made at tae kwon do are Dakota, Henri, and Dylan.
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Some students that inspire me are Grant Jampolsky and Dylan Sewell. Grant is
really good and has been practicing for a long time – longer than me. He is really good at
showing me how to do my moves. He is very patient, has a positive attitude and makes
tae kwon do a lot of fun. Dylan is another black/white belt who is better at some forms
than me. Occasionally, we have a friendly competition. The reason I want to keep going
to get a black belt is that I don’t want to stop right before getting one and I’ve wanted one
since I started. I am going to keep studying tae kwon do after I have a black belt because
tae kwon do is fun, and I still have stuff to learn.
Each of the Masters has added to my training in a different way. The different
masters got me to different new levels of training, like Master Kim helps me with forms
and Master Jampolsky and Master Marcial help my sparring.
Master Kim is fun, very patient and has a very positive attitude. He is very calm.
When some of the students are running around and disobeying the instructors, Master
Kim is calm but firm and gets them back in order. Master Kim has been a stable
presence in my life and I like it that way. When I work with Master Kim, I have fun
doing kicks and one step and three step sparring. Sometimes I find out I have learned
things without realizing it at the time. He makes tae kwon do really fun.
Master Jampolsky is also a lot of fun. She is kind of energetic without being
rowdy. She sets a positive example as a teacher. She sometimes criticizes you, but gives
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praise too. She explains the rules for sparring clearly and thoroughly. Master Jampolsky
is really good at being a beginning sparring teacher.
Master Marcial kind of scared me at first, but now I have grown to like the way he
teaches. I used to take it personally when he criticized me, but now I understand that he
is trying to make me the best I can be. He is a great sparring teacher once you have
learned his way of teaching. He sets a really high standard. He teaches everyone like
they are black belts, and he expects everyone to act like black belts. When I do well in
his class, I feel like I have really accomplished something. I still have a lot to learn from
Master Marcial and his sparring classes. At first I hated sparring and thought that it was
impossible but now I think it’s kind of fun.
My parents have helped me to see the good side of all the Masters. My mom
always tells me that I should figure out how I can learn from them and from other
students. When my grandmother asked what I was learning from teaching other students,
my mom explained that teaching others is one of the best ways I can learn how to do tae
kwon do myself. I hope to teach tae kwon do myself some day. I could give people
lessons. It would be awesome!
Student Creeds – Tae Kwon Do Applied to Life
My parents helped me memorize the student creeds and understand what they
really mean. I would practice my student creeds while my mom quizzed me on them at
night. Sometimes my mom would make up funny things like: “I will use confidence,
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self-discipline, and Kleenex to create harmony for myself and others.” I would say: “No,
no, no, it’s common sense!” She would ask: “I will use confidence, self-discipline, and
Kleenex to create common sense for myself and others?” “No it’s ‘I will use confidence,
self-discipline, and common sense to create harmony for my self and others!’" We both
ended up laughing out loud and I would learn my student creeds.
I later used my student creeds to help with school work. I used the student creeds
in third grade when I had to come up with some rules for personal conduct in class. I
gave a copy of these to Master Kim. This year my class rules have pieces of the student
creeds in them. The five classroom rules in our best colonial English are (we are studying
colonial times in history this year):
1. Thou shalt respect thyself and thy fellow colonists, and appreciate each
others differences.
2. Thou shalt use common sense.
3. Thou shalt listen and obey directions given to thee.
4. Thou shalt remember that what may be “easy” for you may not be “easy”
for all.
5. Thou shalt have a positive attitude and have fun
Student creed #1 and classroom rule 5 are like each other because they are about
having a positive attitude to help you do things. Student creed #4 and classroom rules 1
and 3 are like each other because they are all about respect and listening to directions.
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Student creed #3 and classroom rule 2 are like each other because they are about common
sense. That is how the student creeds are like my classroom rules.
My Parents’ Help
My parents help with tournaments, parades, and me. My parents (specifically my
mom) hem my uniforms, put patches on my uniforms, iron my uniforms before
tournaments, and wash my uniforms. They support me by getting me to classes, going
with me to parades and demonstrations, taking me to tournaments, and cheering for me
during tournaments. My mom has even tried to take videos of me at tournaments and belt
tests so my dad can see me even though he cannot be there. My parents try to get me
ready for belt tests, tournaments, and demonstrations. My parents take pictures and help
with my tournaments, promotion tests, and demonstrations (like parades). My mom has
been trying very hard to help me write my ten page essay. I am learning a lot about
descriptive writing. Instead of just scraping the surface, I am learning to write more
about each subject.
My parents pay for my tae kwon do classes and my private lessons. My
grandmother paid for the first year or two of class, then my mom took over. She pays my
tournament fees, belt test fees and pays for my private lessons with Master Kim.
My current private lessons are helping me train for my black belt and perfecting
my forms and hand basics. They also help me with my one step and three step sparring.
For one step sparring, first of all you need two people, then one of you down blocks then
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the other one goes into joon-bi then the one in down block steps up and punches then the
other one does what he or she is supposed to do. Three step sparring is pretty much the
same. The only thing different is that you do three punches instead of one and you block
the first two before doing the thing like block then lower punch, then middle punch, then
upper punch. I really look forward to my private lessons with Master Kim. I hope to
continue taking private lessons.
Demonstrations
Demonstrations are sometimes fun and sometimes not. Sometimes parades can be
a pain in the butt, like when my mom had to carry the banner for the whole parade and I
was in long sleeves and pants (my uniform) in 90 degree weather. That was a bad
experience with parades but we still did it this year. When I did the parade this year, it
was really fun. It was colder than it was two years ago so it was much easier. I did not
like being responsible for a line of younger kids, but I did like being able to do my form,
and I had fun breaking two boards. I felt very proud to represent Kim’s Martial Arts in
the parade. I hope that people were inspired by our performance to come and study with
Master Kim.
I remember going to the Korean church to demonstrate some stuff for the people
there. It was fun and a little boring at times but otherwise very fun to do. We also
watched other demonstrations like dancing. I got to see traditional Korean dress. The
person playing the drums was really cool. I would like to do another demonstration like
that some time.
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In my first tournament I didn’t get a medal but my mom encouraged me to tell
Master Kim and I did and he gave me a bronze medal. I got a bronze medal in the second
tournament because everyone got one, but in the third tournament I won my first medal in
a tournament. In my fifth tournament I did forms and sparring and got a bronze in forms
then bronze in sparring. I got silver medals in my last two tournaments in the forms
competition. I like tournaments but they are a hassle.
Chore Sheets
I remember the chore sheets and how much I wanted to fill it out because I
wanted a new uniform so badly that I would write twenty pages (typed) just to get a
brand new uniform of my vary own. I did my chores every time I got one and that was
what motivated me to do my chores every time.
Setbacks and Thoughts
Setbacks can hurt your training but only if they make you stay out for a long time,
thoughts can help or hurt your training. Good thoughts and positive thoughts about tae
kwon do can help your training. If I think I can do something, and try my hardest,
sometimes I do even better than I expect. But negative thoughts like “I can’t do it!” can
hurt your training because you convince that it is not even worth trying. When I started
tae kwon do, I never thought I would be able to do the forms that I do today. But I
worked hard and trained a lot to get where I am now. My mom, my dad, my
grandmother and my granddad have always believed in me. They always said that I
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could get a black belt if I just tried hard enough. Sometimes I feel like I don’t want to go
to class. My parents tell me to go. Sometimes my mom has forced me to go when I
really didn’t want to, but it turned out to be a really fun time. They make sure I have not
missed so much class that I lose skills. I have noticed that the people who drop out are
either ones that have the “I can’t do it” or the “I don’t want to do it” attitude. When
people miss a few classes, instead of having their parents cheer them on, they just never
come back. It can be really hard to come back because you are not as good as you were
when you left and you really don’t feel like starting up again. Not every day is going to
be a good day, but you have to stick with it, through and through. When you stick to it,
you can almost always meet your goal. When I meet my goal I feel happy, like I have a
accomplished one of the best things.
Recently I had a setback, a really painful injury, which put me out of sports for
three weeks and kept me out of school for over one week. I was thinking I had to wait to
take my black belt test in March 2006. But I came back. I took lots of private lessons,
and went to a lot of classes to get back to where I was before I was injured. I didn’t let
the injury bother me too much. It was really hard when I was thinking I wasn’t going to
be able to take my black belt test because of my injury. I’m taking it on October 22,
2005! I’m really nervous about my black belt test, but I know that my parents support me
and they have stuck with me, so I am going for it. Master Kim would not have me testing
if he did not think I was ready.
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Tae kwon do builds self discipline by having you sit still, not goof around and
having to do forms correctly. You need self discipline to get a black belt. The discipline
I have learned at tae kwon do has helped me in my classroom. When something is really
easy for me, I quietly do my work and then help others. When something is really hard
for me, I practice harder and I don’t give up. I am not afraid to ask for help. I like to ask
for help if I need it, because it gets me to learn new things.
Taking my black belt test is the best thing to happen in my six years doing tae
kwon do. I’m training to do what I thought would take me eight years at the minimum!
This is an accomplishment I will always be proud of. Whenever I am trying to do things
in the future, remembering my success here after all of my hard work and discipline will
help me work hard and succeed.
I can’t remember when tae kwon do wasn’t a part of my life. I’ve been training
for more than half my life. The lessons I’ve learned here, self confidence, discipline,
how to learn and how to teach will help me in the future. A teacher can be tall or short,
young or old, male or female, white or black or any other color. A teacher is anyone
who can share thoughts and lessons with other people. A student or pupil is anyone who
is willing to learn. I hope to be a good teacher and a good student all my life.
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