My Son's First Grading

Anna and I went to watch our son's first grading in Tae Kwon Do today. He's preempting the rest of the class, because he can't make the grading day this Saturday. We were so proud, watching him perform his kicks and punches, all with a kiai full of enthusiasm and energy. Daniel is naturally energetic, and Tae Kwon Do seems the perfect form of catharsis--I wish I'd been able to catch it on film.

It struck me while I was watching that children receive instruction and correction with a wonderful sincerity. Perhaps it's the degree of trust they place in their teachers, perhaps just their inherent nature or perhaps their innocence--whatever it is, children seem to leave the ego at home when they learn. Daniel and his training friends were completely open, like sponges soaking up plankton. My pride gets bruised on occasion when I'm training. Certainly I strive to do everything perfectly, but the more I think on it the more I wonder whether (sometimes, at least) my effort is purely egotistical. Daniel wants to learn because learning is a wonder to him. I'm sure that, sometimes, I want to learn to satisfy some inherent competitiveness in me; I want to be better than the man I'm standing next to. So, today Daniel taught me something, although completely unwittingly. Note to self: learn for the sake of learning. I suppose this is what Lao Tzu meant when he admonished us to retain the child.

Which leads me to a big thank you to Hall's Tae Kwon Do here in Melbourne. Great job.