Martial Artistry

Today some of us participated in a test for advancement in Taekwon-Do. We started at the lowest level with a White Belt, which represents innocence - no prior knowledge of Taekwon-Do.

All five of us qualified for a yellow stripe on our white belt, which is the next level up from white belt.

Testing involves a series of patterns which demonstrate various punches and blocks. This martial art involves physical and mental effort, and one must show proficiency in knowledge of Taekwon-Do. Of course, there is nothing interesting in watching people get quizzed on knowledge of Taekwon-Do. Breaking things, now that's a different story. Watch two of the Noisykids destroy trees:



Here is a video of me breaking a board:



Here is Noisykid #4, who got the highest score on the test, going through one of the patterns. I am proud of all my children, and especially proud of my oldest son at home. He helped me with some of the patterns.



Here we have the youngest Noisykid(and Taekwon-Do student?) practicing his 'Ready' stance:
Note that his shirt has a Sheriff badge and has the caption, I'M IN CHARGE! How true:



Of course, I always remember my first experience in the martial arts; this special type of hand to hand combat has almost disappeared: