cour.te.sy n: the quality or state of being courteous.
cour.te.ous adj: showing respect and consideration for others.
–Webster’s Dictionary
Every taekwondo book I’ve ever read has a section devoted to the five tenets of taekwondo. In them, courtesy is usually described in terms of respect for instructors and those of senior rank, as well as the rituals [...]
Taekwondo has five tenets – principles – for each student to follow in all aspects of life, both inside the dojang and in the larger world. These are: courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, and indomitable spirit. Over the next five posts, I’m going to take each tenet (one post per tenet) and explore what it means [...]
Yesterday, I competed in my first competition — at least the first one against people from schools other than White Tiger. I competed in one event: forms (poomse). Poomse is my favorite thing about taekwondo. I enjoy sparring, kicking practice, etc. — but there’s something about poomse that makes it appeal to me above all [...]
Update 06 Aug 09 — There’s an updated version of this post called “Where’s Your Balance?“
Balance has come to means so many different things to me since I started martial arts. There’s physical balance and emotional balance and each affects the other in amazing ways. I find that when my emotional well-being is balanced, my [...]
This post is my personal experience of being a martial artist with a chronic illness. I am not a doctor and nothing in this post should be taken as medical advice.
Let’s face it – sometimes martial arts hurt. Injuries happen, just like they do in any other sport. I once broke my left big toe [...]
Continue reading about Pain, Chronic Illness and the Martial Arts
My son and I are students at White Tiger. During our trial lesson, DS got a big surprise when the instructor told him to address her as “Sir”. “I earned the title,” she said. “I did everything the men did.”
That started me thinking. I seem to find more equality in martial arts schools and classes [...]
The other day, my son asked my why I wanted to take martial arts in the first place. I was stunned. Not by the question, but by the fact I didn’t have an answer. I’d never even thought of asking the question.
Why martial arts? For most of the other things I do, I can point [...]
