Childhood’s End


When the Machado Brothers gave me my Black Belt back in ’97 – they also gave me some solid advice. “You are pretty much the same person tomorrow, that you were yesterday’ Said Rigan ‘ you will win some and you will lose some; don’t worry about it; don’t let the new belt weigh you down’. ‘And remember’ said Jean Jacques, ‘we are not supermen; we can and will make mistakes.’ True words – and good advice.
Our childhood on the mat comes to and end, not when we get a blue belt, a purple belt, a brown belt or even a black belt. Our childhood comes to an end when we are tapped out by someone with a lower rank than ourselves; when we realize that we are only human and can, (and in fact, need to) make mistakes.
A lot of people worry excessively about losing on the mat; but consider, everyone needs to lose. In chess, there are winners and losers, in pretty much every game; it’s the fun of playing that ultimately counts.
JBW

Comments

Kurt Normington said…
Those words are so inspiring as I am on my way to grading night at Adam Metcalf's AMMA GYM tonight! The timing of your post was perfect for creating my mindset for tonight! Thankyou John
Shark Girl said…
Words everyone can learn from. Thanks.

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