Some Notes

Here is some more about me before we really get into this blog, so that we are all on the same page:

1. I teach and practice Taekwondo, which is a martial art from Korea. If you want to know if it is the best one, I encourage you to think of it this way: they speak French in France and Chinese in China and German in Germany, but not one language is definitively better than the other - they are merely different methods of communication that have developed in different countries. It is the same with martial arts - different styles have developed over time in different regions. If you really need an answer, the one that is the "best" one is the one that you practice the most, and for me, that is Taekwondo.

2. Since Taekwondo is from Korea, we use Korean words. The Taekwondo school is called a "dojang." "Dojo" is used in Japanese martial arts!

3. The style of Taekwondo I practice is Kukkiwon or World Taekwondo/Olympic style. I have practiced Taekwondo since I was three years old, and I am currently a fifth Dan, or fifth degree black belt under Kukkiwon.

4. I don't have children, but I talk about my kids a lot, mostly because I have about 300 of them and they ensure that my life is never boring. Some of them I still teach, some of them I don't. When I talk about my kids, I'm talking about my old and current Taekwondo students.

1. I also talk about my parents...and also my kid's parents. To prevent confusion, I'll call my own parents "my parents" and my kid's parents "the dojang parents." I will also talk about the parents that are also students: "Taekwondo moms/dads."

2. My father is the Grand Master of our dojang, with the highest honor of 9th Dan. My mother also works at our dojang, mostly in a secretary capacity, but with owner-level authority. Right now, it's us three running the place.

3. I love writing as a vehicle to work through my thoughts. I've finished NaNoWriMo twice, which is where you try to write at least 50,000 words in the month of November. The latest attempt was a novel about my Taekwondo life, but I thought this blog might be a better way to show my evolving thoughts. I fully embrace the fact that I am still growing and learning, and I hope to continue doing so.

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