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Life After Black
Belt
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Sa Bum Nim Jonathan
Simonds as a white belt (right), circa 1968 (click
to enlarge).
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Does anyone remember being a "White
Belt"?,… What a glorious time! Filled with the wonder and magic of the
Martial Arts. So much to learn and so little time. It really didn't matter
what was taught, because it all had meaning for us. We were a sponge! Everyone
was a potential source of knowledge. The Yellow Belts seemed light years
ahead of us. The intermediate belt ranks seemed like Mount
Everest! Off in the misty distance somewhere. Why, we were so
awed by their presence we very seldom spoke when they were around!
We couldn't wait to get to class and we
weren't there just to learn the physical things. We were taught about
discipline, respect for ourselves; and respect for our classmates and
instructors. We were taught about the culture and history of our particular
Martial Art. The possibilities for learning were endless. The physical
training allowed us to forget for a while the stresses of our daily lives,
we could immerse ourselves completely in this strange new and exciting
hobby for an hour or two a couple times a week. But soon an hour or two a
week just isn't enough, we seek out our class mates and work on developing
certain techniques or stances or punches that just don't seem right and
train until late in the evening or all day without even noticing the time!
We soon find that our training has started to change us physically and
emotionally, we develop a whole new set of muscles, our timing, balance and
coordination have started to improve to the point where maybe, just maybe!
We can actually be a Yellow belt!
We have also noticed how the changes in our
attitude make life easier for others and us. The discipline, humility and
thoughtfulness stressed in the training hall begin to smooth our relationships
outside of class. How could all of this have happened so suddenly? Learning
has become second nature for us now; we're on a roll. We respect and admire
our Black Belt instructors, as they seem to have an endless amount of
patience while we struggle to learn some of the more difficult concepts or
techniques.
Seemingly without warning one day we are
asked to test for Brown Belt! Are they out of their minds? How can these
instructors whose opinion we value so highly possibly consider us ready to
test for Brown Belt! Good lord they might even ask us to lead a class. We
have been helping with instruction for some time but the responsibility of
teaching an entire class is not one we are looking forward to. Why it
hasn't been that long since we were stumbling around and trying desperately
to touch our toes! At Brown Belt the other students will be watching us and
trying to emulate our every move. This is a responsibility we don't take
lightly. What if we make mistakes? We will be required to remember every
technique and try to explain it to someone whose actually thinks we know
what we're doing!
Some how we weather this storm and we are
soon preparing for Black Belt testing! Black Belt! The end of a long
journey! We will finally become a member of the elite crowd of teachers and
instructors reaching back thousands of years. Along the way many of our
classmates have fallen by the way side. Some have found the rigors of
training to be too physically demanding or the time commitment to be
prohibitive. Although the group is smaller, strong bonds have developed
with the remaining students as you deal with the challenges placed on the
higher ranks by senior instructors.
You learn to cope with the stresses of teaching
and to take pride in your growing skills. You look back on the lowly White
belts and wonder why some of them can't grasp even the most basic skills or
concepts. How will they ever get to your Level!
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Kyo Sa Nim Michael McLeod
as an 10-year-old white belt, circa 1990.
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At this point a critical thing happens! We
discover just how good we are! Why, in some cases we perform the more
complicated techniques better than the Black Belt instructors! All those
lessons about humility and the importance of not allowing our egos to
prevent us from seeing ourselves are too long ago, and are clearly meant
for someone else anyway. Why……We have actually entered and won
tournaments!!
The crucible of competition has proven us
to be exceptional in our eyes and among our peers!
Finally the big day comes; we are testing for our Black Belts! We will
finally join the ranks of Black Belt instructors. We are filled with pride
for our accomplishments and look forward to teaching all of the hard won
knowledge we have acquired along the way. The journey is a long one but we
will finally be given control of a class and can bend it to our own concepts
and training techniques. Within this pride however there is a seed of
regret. After working so hard for so long we don't actually feel any
different! Our long time goal pursued for so many years with single-minded
dedication doesn't bring with it the instantaneous gratification we thought
it would.
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Kyo Sa Nim Jason McLeod
as an 8-year-old white belt, circa 1990.
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Is this it? My goal has been reached! After
all, we have also begun to notice how some of the things taught by these
older Black Belts seem outdated and don't fit in with the newer methods we
have discovered. As time goes on small things become petty annoyances, how
the classes are run, the things taught by our instructors don't fit our
training needs of the moment. We begin to question how good our instructors
really are! They obviously don't give us the amount of respect we deserve.
We start to miss class and only work on the parts of our art we deem to be
useful! The concept of a total approach to leaning and transmitting this
learning to our life experience has somehow been lost along the way.
The ABYSS of ego has opened before us! And
threatens to swallow up years of training, dedication and perseverance. Ego
can forever prevent us from truly learning about our Art!
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Dahn Boh Nim Adam Boike
with parents Kathy and Allan just before his promotion to Jo Kyo Nim in
1998.
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At this point, more than 50% of all Black
Belts and Black Belt candidates leave the Martial Arts without truly
understanding why. Without the mental discipline and humility that is an
integral part of all Martial Arts we are ill equipped to get past this
obstacle.
As Black Belts or Black Belt candidates in
spite of our physical prowess or skill with technique we MUST remain students.
The most difficult aspects of the Martial Arts are not taught in the early
stages of training because they require our mastery of basic technique. Our
training isn't over at Black Belt it has really only just begun! We are
only capable of absorbing certain aspects of the Martial Arts after this
basic stage has been completed.
My original instructor once said to me,
after I impatiently asked to be taught a higher level technique, "Why
would I attempt to train a puppy to read and write, it's frustrating for me
and isn't fair to the puppy!" Although I didn't understand this at the
time, it has become clearer as I progress with my own learning and
teaching.
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10-year-old Dahn Boh Nim Ben Forejt II just prior to promotion in 1998.
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Training in the Martial Arts is a life long
learning process. It is our goal as Black Belts to unite mind and body with
the circle of knowledge passed on for hundreds of generations.
Understanding the physical aspects of our art is only a small part of that
training. It is taught to beginners because it prepares their bodies for
the rigors of advanced training and it's the easiest to learn!
This same instructor also said to me,
"Ego is a Dragon that feeds on Pride!"
Don't Feed the DRAGON! Don't allow your
training to be cut short because you can't remember the wonder of being a
white belt! Each of us must remain a student to learn! Be patient and
humble. The Martial Arts is not about creating the perfect sidekick, it's
about creating harmony and peace within ourselves.
Sa Bum Nim
Jon Simonds
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