An Odyssey

It comes as no surprise to those within the Martial arts that it takes far longer than many people think to rise through the ranks and eventually make it to Shodan.

This is a small Photo essay on one student, Mike Duval, who at the present time is not yet a Shodan, but ..perhaps in the near future.

Each rank has its hard spots..each holds different obstacles to be overcome. I don't know who was more surprised...Mike and Jonathan McKenzie(above with new green belts and certificates) or those of us on the testing panel! Time always has a way of catching up with you...the more time you have..the farther away some things seem to be. As students get older there are always other interests that get in the way of their study of the Martial arts. It seems very few manage to keep going long enough to fulfill their own dreams of making it to black belt. One of the largest drop out times for martial arts students is Yellow belt. Followed (percentage wise) by green belt. Few students make it to the blue belt rank, and of course even fewer get to Brown. The Brown belt rank seems to be a mental barrier for many students, whether they suddenly think that they are not good enough ( or even worse..think they are too good?!) I am not sure, but this rank weeds out 50% of the ones that have gotten that far.

Whatever happened to the little kid who got his yellow belt at the top of the page? He's driving a car, still working out ..hard...and the next step is perhaps the toughest of them all. "November 1998,Mike made it through the 5 1/2 hours to earn his Shodan! No matter how you look at it, it is NOT the Sensei, it is Not the Pupil...it IS the combination of the two that makes the Martial Artists of Today ..and tomorrow!

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