Back to Being a Karate Man

How’s this for crazy? I knew when we left for our trip three weeks ago that there was going to be a karate test when I got back, on Monday. That meant we would land on Saturday, get home on Sunday, and then I’d have to test on Monday. Normally this wouldn’t a be a problem because I can practice anywhere there’s enough room for me to move around, but I was going to have to perform a kata that I had just learned, and in a jet-lagged state, no less.

I had missed about two months of karate because summer was a little nuts and there was just too much going on. When I returned, I was told there was going to be a test, and I was going to have to know a new kata. I had been taught it several times, but it was still new, and I was going to have to learn it correctly before the test. I had only one class to go over it before we left, so there was the possibility I was going to learn it wrong.

I arranged to meet with PC and his son on the Friday before our departure. We were leaving on Saturday, so PC said he’d be at the farmer’s market. We met and stood behind the library and practiced the kata, and then we took off. I practiced throughout Italy and Croatia, which was kind of cool. When we returned from our trip, I met with PC on Sunday afternoon and ran through it one last time with him, and then on Monday, it was show time.

The test was fine, though I was in a jet-lagged daze from the get-go. The fatigue really caught up with me right before class, but once you start stretching and doing drills, you get energized. The class was small, but the energy good, and I felt relaxed and ready.

Now that it’s over, I’m one step away from my black belt. Master H wants to test again in the next few months, maybe before the new year, so this should be interesting.

Until then, thanks for reading, and thanks to sarahbakes1 for the pic.