ABSOLUTE ASCENDANCY

Commencing operation . . .

Overview

Saturday was a big day for the UK Koshiki Karate dojo. The final grading for the year was conducted, and in the evening, the annual Koshiki Karate Christmas Party was held.

Grading

Four students were put to the test in acquiring a provisional Black Belt.

They succeeded.

The kids will need to grade again once they become eighteen years of age to become fully-fledged Black Belts. Our Karate system does not believe that any person under the age of eighteen has the right to bear the weight and responsibility of being a full Black Belt.

There are many Karate systems out there that practically hand out belts to their students, for the sake of making money. This is not how things are done over here, however. No one gets a Black Belt, provisional or otherwise unless they have demonstrated a significant commitment to training, mastery of technical skills, and proven combat ability.

I assisted with the grading proceedings on the day, providing an additional pair of eyes to ensure the quality of Karate demonstrated on the day was to a high standard worthy of Black Belt. All four students who graded absolutely earned their right to receive a Black Belt.

Party

The evening atmosphere was much more relaxed in comparison to the grading on the day! I arrived, caught up with some people, and then made my way over to the pizza buffet. I probably had two small boxes worth of pizza.

Once in a while, it is fine to let loose and treat yourself!

Besides, I have lost even more weight this year. I did not think I would ever see 60kg displayed on the weighing scales, but there you go.

Dessert was served, and I ended up grabbing a couple of macaroons as well as many other bite-sized treats. Shortly afterwards, our head instructor’s wife gave a short speech about the money raised for the two chosen charities this year – Leukaemia Care and Friends of Chernobyl’s Children. £500 was raised in total for the two charities, which is a great result.

Our head instructor, Shihan Ciaran himself, then speaks about the milestones achieved and the many things that lie ahead in 2020. Kickboxing at our club has evolved tremendously this year – we finally have a boxing ring in the dojo.

For me personally, I have achieved a great deal in 2019 also. I took first place for the very first time fighting internationally in Karate, and I won my first amateur kickboxing match too.

After the speeches, entertainment was provided in the form of live music! A local band called Los Innuendos took the stage and played various songs ranging from the ’60s onward. They were great and got the crowd dancing in a short time.

They took a short break halfway through and during the interval; Peter, the adult who graded to provisional Black Belt dressed up as Santa and took the stage! He had a box filled with giant-sized chocolate bunnies that he started handing out to the kids. I was encouraged to play the part of Santa’s little helper, so I too ascended to the stage to play my role in this two-person stage act!

It was pretty funny; each time chocolate was handed out to one of the students, Santa threatened them to turn up to training more often or else! I even chimed in once with the classic “we know where you live” line.

The band then returned to playing an additional bunch of songs. I was invited to take the dance floor on more than one occasion, but I was feeling pretty tired, so I declined each time. Sorry! The band finished playing, and it was time for me to make my exit.

Conclusion

It was a momentous day with a lot of introspective and reflective thought on my part. 2020 is looking to be a big year for the martial arts scene.

Mission complete – Overlord Drakow signing out.