Karate and the question of Superheroes.

 

When you begin it is if you are taken to a gigantic ladder, given a white belt and begin to climb.

The belt shows you where you are on that ladder.

Then when you climb higher, you reach rungs where you get different belts. Purple, Orange, Yellow, Blue, Green, Brown and finally you are ready to test for a youth black belt. And there are three levels to that. 

All of those belts are not rewards, but indicators that you are ready for new challenges. And on the average that journey takes 7 to 9 years. You can see some of those members who have already spent years in this class. Along that journey your body changes, and you have developed many skills.

The journey is the same as for the adult members, but because they have more control of their time, and are not in school, which is more important, and because many of you are in other sports too, the journey takes longer. The ranking system used for the adults cover the same steps, but the at a different pace.

Reaching Black Belt (of any category – youth or adult) does not mean you are a fighter or supposed to fight with people. Rather it indicates that you are now a beginner. The ladder stretches far into the sky, how long a black belt will climb depends on what the black belt themselves need from the training. They have earned the right to make that decision on their own, but if asked I would assist them.

Adult black belts are new black belts, learning how to begin to use the skills they have developed. Black belts then may be training for their own purposes, or they may be training to contribute to the art, of they might begin training to eventually become instructors after say 20 years of training, as well as for many other reasons. As an example, I have been training over 40 years, and still have more to learn, I told you that ladder stretches a long way up and still higher.

 

Karate is not a comic book training. The goal to be able to defend yourself is complex, and takes a long time.

On the other hand, those who are black belts are Superheroes. Each one here is my Superhero for sharing in the training. Assisting me, even becoming the instructors.