By Brian Beall

When I was six years old I wanted to learn Martial Arts, but I didn’t know where to start. Then I found MAMA (Mountain Academy of Martial Arts). I was so happy to see that there was a class off martial arts near my house. When I started my first class I was pleased to see that everything was so amazing. At the end of the first class I was thinking that I would like to learn how to protect myself and others. I was thinking that this is a very cool martial art. Practicing Taekwondo helped me build up confidence for almost everything that I do. When I was a white belt I never knew that I would be leading the class in basics. I never thought that I would be teaching other students some of the knowledge that I have learned in Taekwondo. Studying martial art makes me feel happy (inside and out) and is making me push myself by making me take risks.
I also play full contact American football, and Taekwondo is helping me with that sport. My training has helped with this sport by increasing my flexibility and my balance. If I continue to play sports I believe that Taekwondo will continue to help me succeed. My training has helped me become more disciplined in just about every part of my life, and I would like to make it an important part of my future. My Taekwondo training has helped strengthen my mind and body. My training helped me focus to do my best, and to work on not making mistakes. My training also helped me a better instructor.

1Taekwondo master Joe Kim is a football coach now, but back then when he was twenty three years old he was an Olympic level athlete. However, Taekwondo was not in the Olympics yet he was on the united states national team and competed in the Pan Am games. He didn’t need football but football needed him. It came calling one day when a red Mercedes pulled up outside the martial arts school his father founded in North Ridgeville. Two enormous men got out of the car, and asked “hey are you Joe Kim?” This meeting became the beginning of his football career as a coach. He is currently the assistant strength and conditioning/Skill Development coach for Cleveland Browns., and he had become a football lifer. He used his combative techniques as a black belt in Taekwondo on the football field.

I plan on continuing to develop new skills and strengthen the skills I already have. I will also use all that I have learned to be more disciplined in all that I do.

Bibliography
1 Labbe,Dan “Taekwondo Master retuns”www.cleveland.com web June 24 2016 11/5/16