Dear Role Model

Dear Tom Scott, 

I admire to you for many different reasons, for one you are very accomplished in Karate. You've won National titles in the US and also World titles. You have been the USA National Team Captain and a USA-NKF Certified Coach. You were the first USA Karate athlete in 10 years to win the gold in kilo and open weight categories at Pan American Karate Championships. Recently you won a gold medal in the World Karate Championships in Paris. Which is amazing also. 

But besides just Karate you're also a great person. Every time I see you, whether it's at a tournament, at training, or just getting lunch you always have a smile on your face. You're also very friendly and approchable which you don't often see in Karate competitors. I also admire how committed you are. You can see that you are willing to put in the effort and work harder than everyone else in the room. Also, you always do things to the best of your ability, no slacking.

Something that I just recently found out is that besides being an amazing athlete you are also very intelligent. You went to the University of Texas in Dallas and earned a Master's Degree in Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Also, you went to Texas Christian University and got a Bachelors Degree in Criminal Justice, and made the TCU Dean’s Honor List. All that school and still was able to keep up and compete in Karate. Impressive honestly. 

One day I hope to be as accomplished and well rounded as you are. But for now I can only see you as a role model and try to become as great as you are. 

Outlier

Sometimes in my own dojo I feel like an outlier. My dojo is Wado style, the man who started the style was never really into Kata so he basically threw a few random Katas in his style and focused mainly on Kumite. When Karate people think of Wado they know, 'Oh those are fighters.' But I have always been drawn to Kata, the flow, the strength, the fancy jumps, all of it. The only problem is that Katas from my style don't exactly do well in competition. They're too boxy, and honestly kind of boring. 

Shito on the other hand has tons of Katas, so many I can't even count them all. The man who started Shito really liked Kata, he put a lot of effort into creating them. The first time I ever saw a Shito Kata was at a tournament in Colorado. A girl performed her Kata and it caught my eye instantly. I watched her move through it, she looked almost as if she was water and stone at the same time. She would flow like a river into the move then freeze like stone. Mesmerized I asked my Sensei what she was doing. because I had never seen anything like that before. He said, "Oh, that's Shito." 

I wanted so bad to learn Shito Katas and compete with them. The only problem was that no one knew them or was willing to teach them to me. All until one day Hector came to our dojo. Hector is a US Military Officer, and has a black belt in Shito. Of course I asked him to teach me and he did. I picked up Shito quickly and soon started to do them in tournaments. But that only created conflict. My Senseis did not approve of me learning Shito Katas because we are Wado. But I've rarely seen Wado Katas win, and I felt awkward doing them. Shito had finesse and the majority of the best Kata Champions in the World do Shito. Eventually, me doing Shito grew on them. They even bring Shito people in to do seminars. But still sometimes I can't help but feel different for wanting to be successful in Kata.


        Wado Symbol                                                              Shito Symbol

I'm going to Japan!

A temple located in Tokyo, Japan. Photo curtsy of www.wallpaperawesome.com

I'm going to Japan! And I can hardly hold it in I'm so excited. I'm going during February break, I'll be there for a total of 10 days. I'm going with my sister, my friend Danny and Danny's dad who is also a Karate coach at my dojo. Danny's dad is the one who organized the whole trip and invited my sister and I to go. It's actually a surprise for him, so don't tell. 

I've only been out of the country three times, twice to Mexico and once to Costa Rica. The only thing I'm not looking forward to is the flight. I hate flying, honestly if I could go the rest of my life without ever stepping onto a plane, I would. The annoying whiney kids, the crowded aisles, crappy food, uncomfortable seats it's all a pain. But that's a problem because I love to travel and see new places. The flight from here to Tokyo is about 14 hours... Yay. But it'll be worth it. In my previous blog I talked about a woman named Sakura Kokumai, the 1st place Kata Champion in the World. She's a local in Japan so she'll be able to show us around, show us the best restaurants, and get away from other tourists. Not to mention I'm getting the opportunity to train with her. 

As many of you may know, Karate originated in Japan. I can't wait to see how other people train and see new styles. One thing I know for sure is that they are much more intense than they are here in the US. I'm afraid that I'll sneeze during training and get my head cut off with a samurai sword. I'm totally kidding... I mean I hope I'm kidding. 

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Black Belt

Me shaking my Sensei's hand after the test (I could barely walk)

As of December 12, 2015 I am an official black belt. After all these years it feels so good to be able to call myself a black belt and know that I earned it. Really I earned it, after performing eight katas, free sparring, and basics that make your muscles ache, and all that under immense pressure was far from easy. The test in total was four hours long. The pressure that we were all under was probably the worst thing. One of my friends almost passed out because she was so nervous, even though she'd done the drill hundreds of times before. And after we're all tired and hungry and ready to sleep for the rest of the year they have us do what's called a spirit test. Basically they try to make you break and see how far you can push yourself. Hardcore right? Well for ours we did five sets of one minute of push ups, sit ups, birpies, jumping jacks, and tons of other excersises  It was exhausting. But hey, now it's over and I never have to do it again.


A blackbelt in Karate to me represents the peak of my training, a checkpoint to realize that my hard work has payed off. I wanted to achieve a blackbelt for a few different reasons. For one, it’s a major accomplishment and the highest level you can reach in Karate. Also, you gain another level of respect and I feel that people and coaches take you more seriously. And lastly just because it’s pretty awesome to be a blackbelt. But the belt is more than just a piece of fabric that you tie around your waist, it’s much more. A blackbelt means that I have to set an example and I don’t get to slack off or be lazy. Also, now that I am a blackbelt I will have to make more of an effort to help other students achieve their goals and be a good role model for them to follow. 

I realize that getting a blackbelt isn’t the end of my training but only the beginning. Many people have asked me, "Well isn't Karate boring now that you have your black belt." And I say not even a little. Having the black belt doesn't mean you're a master it means that you have reached a certain level of Karate. A quote that I found explains this perfectly, it goes "From white belt to black belt you shape the tool, at black belt you start to learn how to use it." After almost seven years of training I'm still not to the best of my ability in Karate. There will always be new things to learn and perfect. Now that I have my black belt I will have new opportunities and many more roads to take than the journey I took to get to the blackbelt.

Foundation of Karate

Did you know that Karate is Japanese for "open hand"? Probably not, but it makes sense seeing as how Karate uses no weapons. And there's a story behind that, but let's start from the beginning. Karate originated in a small island off the coast of Japan called Okinawa. A beautiful country with breathtaking beaches and landforms, the people who live here are simple humble farmers. In 1609, Okinawa was run by the Satsuma Clan from Japan and under their rule, weapons were banned. This caused a huge interest in Karate. Many of the locals began to practice in order to defend themselves against the Satsuma guards that would constantly harass citizens and abuse them. But they had to do it in secret if they were ever caught practicing they were executed. Anyways, after all the harshness and evil emperors things eventually did get better. In 1905 a man named Anko Itosu took Karate out of secrecy and managed to get the authorities to allow him to start a program teaching it in the local schools. This was one of the most significant acts in the history of Karate and brought in new era of growth for the art. Today there are over a million Karate school all over the world. 

Training at Shuri Castle c.1938. Photographed by Nakasone Genwa

Karate Champions

In my Karate life I have been lucky to meet and train with some of the best Karate competitors in the world. Tom Scott for example has won four gold medals in the Pan American Championships, six medals in the North American Championships, seven USA Open Championships, and three Karate Premier League Finalist. He is truly amazing. Tall and muscular, Tom is 6 feet tall and competes in male Kumite. He is currently ranked 3rd in the world. Also, he is a vampire. I swear he has all of the qualities of a vampire, tall, dark hair, pale, and super super fast. If you saw him compete you would agree with me. 


The next competitor is named Sakura Kokumai from Japan, she holds first place in Kata. She has won five gold medals in the USA National Championships, four gold medals in the Senior Pan American Championships, and four gold medals in the Junior Pan American Championships. I look up to Sakura because of how determined she is and how seriously she takes her training. 

Next is Maxine Lisot. Even though she is only five feet tall and 55 kg Maxine still dominates in Karate. She's been on the USA National team since 2007. Maxine is hilarious and always manages to find a way to make everyone feel more relaxed. I look up to her a lot, the majority of the time I have to go against girls twice my size that are much more powerful, but I just think about Maxine and realize that if she can do so can I.  

Another Kata campion is Antonio Díez. He is best known for winning gold medals in kata at the World Championships in France and Serbia, winning the World Games in Cali Colombia and a silver medal at the World Championships in Japan 2008. He started Karate when he was only five and has been doing it ever since.  

Last is Rubén Canedo, I met him last year when he came to Park City to teach a seminar. I learned many things from him that have improved my Kata tremendously. The first thing he told me that I will never forget is that Kata is not a dance. And anyone who performs it like a dance is doing it wrong. He also taught me how to use my Hada. (Your innermost power found below your bellybutton). "More hada!" He would yell. Over and over again "More hada!" But the best thing he told me is, "When you feel physically and mentally exhausted after your Kata you know you did good." Which I found to be true if I don't feel my muscles ache just a little then I know I didn't do it the best that I could. 

Photo curtsy of http://www.teamusa.org