P.S. You may want to read this if you A) want to know what being a black belt really means or B) want to know what martial arts can do for your family.
Before I drove to the studio Saturday, I hastily scraped the ice out of my car. My Ford Fiesta dutifully reminding me that it was twenty-nine degrees. I didn’t even double up on layers—a habit I started in November for our outdoor classes—because: “who was really going to come to outdoor classes with this weather?”
There were only a few students coming to the Saturday outdoor classes. The cold had chased all, but the most dauntless student to indoor and virtual.
…
I forgot the who I was betting against.
At 10:30 am, Master Dinoto pulled me office. All he said was, “someone is here for the outdoor class.”
He actually sounded apologetic because—and I can’t stress this enough—it was ✨surprisingly cold ✨
When I got outside, there stood the undeterrable Ms. Civitello. One of our third-degree black belts, and an experienced Junior instructor in her own right. Actually, Junior sounds a little unfair considering she has taught full classes. More on that later.
Do you wanna know what the first thing she said to me was?
It wasn’t, “this is too cold.”
It wasn’t, “seriously there’s snow on the ground.”
Not even, “I’m not sure how much longer I can come to class.”
…
She said, “Can I do the Virtual class outside here and leave early to do this outdoor class?”
I like to pretend I’m a determined martial artist. You’ll notice I didn’t want to be outside. This teenager rocked up and asked if she could do more…
Needless to say, there isn’t a snowball’s chance Georgia that I would say no.
I Shouldn’t have Been Surprised. This is the same Ms Civitello:
✔️Who was more competent as a camp counselor & Junior instructor at 17 than I was at 20
✔️Who remembers the bonus half of many of our forms/Hyungs
✔️ Who will always catch instructor mistakes (Mostly Mine. Don’t tell anyone though)
✔️Who constantly asks pedagogical questions
Oh, and due to some scheduling changes. She taught a Virtual Group Class without any previous training.
P.S. In case you’re wondering what, a martial artist is supposed to look like, re-read the above. That’s a better example than I am most days.
P.S.S. I usually offer to write a letter of recommendation, although I doubt this particular student needs it.
As always, let me know if you want to try your first MA Class.
www.dinotokarate.com