Achieving a black belt

Last week I achieved the 1st kub in taekwon-do, which is the last degree before you can take your exam for the degree of 1st Dan (black belt). If everything goes well, mentally and physically, it is expected that I can take the exam by May 2007. When I started in 2002 (almost 38 years old) I never thought I would be able to get a black belt (too old, no condition). I was always interested in Martial Arts, already in the days that David Carradine starred in the TV series Kung Fu. Sometimes I tried to imitate some of the techniques I had seen on television. I used to play tennis and badminton for a lot of years, but my left knee kept me more and more from being active in these sports. After both of my children became members of our local Taekwondo school I decided to participate myself instead of watching them from the sideline. I experienced that looking at Martial Arts is completely different from being an active sportsman yourself. My first 20 minutes in taekwondo were devistating. I was literally lying on the floor, gasping for oxygen. Nevertheless I went on, but was realistic enough to see that I could not participate in sparring competition anymore in which I might have to compete guys of 20. My focus therefore is more on the technical part of taekwondo. In the past years I got my D and C license as a taekwondo referee, so I can have my contribution in a completely different, but still challenging way. So my sports ambition for 2007 is clear: getting a 1st Dan degree at the age of 43. Besides my own ambition this exam has a special personal touch, because my 13 year old son will probably take his 1st Dan exam on the very same day. I think it will be a unique achievement when a father and son can reach this milestone on the same day. Hopefully it will be a great experience in which we will both succeed. Whatever the outcome, I'm sure it will be a day that I'll remember for the rest of my life.