I wanted karate and I got.....

[Manny]

My 16 birthday was coming, and I wanted to study karate, a girl friend of mine who was blue belt in Tae Kwon Do asked me to train Tae Kwon Do. -What's Tae Kwon Do? I asked - it's Korean Karate Manny-.
Well - if it's karate- let's go- I said.

My dad gave me as birthday present the money for the incripcion fee, the month fee and the karate uniform, my first lesson was hard, I ended so tired and with my feet soles with bloodl blisters, the floor was a woden one.

The next day I had to perform a bully in a play in the teatre of my high school, I had to wear cowboy boots and my feet were torn, I was in tears trying to put that boots, the play was very good.

That's was my begining in the Karate Koreano back in october 1983.

Peace.

Manny

 

[dancingalone]

I was 13 when the karate bug bit me. I got into the ninja craze during the eighties, but I never seriously thought about studying until a school opened up near my home; it was about a 5 minute ride by bike. I begged and pleaded with my parents to let to join. Money was tight at the time, but they enrolled me on the condition that I up my chores around the house.

As it turned out, it was tae kwon do, but I didn't know the difference back then. The uniforms were the same as karate and they punched and kicked... So it's all the same right?

With almost 30 years in the martial arts, I'm almost overcome with the fact that such a big part of my life came entirely by chance. And thanks, Dad. With Father's Day coming up, I wish my father was still around to share his wisdom and love with me, particularly since I have my own son now. 'Karate' is just one more thing I owe Dad for.