A 75 Year Old Man Taught Me Courage at a Karate Tournament
This 64-year-old kid appreciates a good role model
The green belt limped into the ring as he approached the panel of five advanced black belts.
He was ageless. I’m 64 and I knew he was older than me.
Karate kata competitors must announce their name, school and instructor’s name, followed by the name of the kata they are to perform. This guy was stammering nervously. It sounded like he wasn’t sure or forgot the names.
He stumbled through but completed his kata. It was a kata I was familiar with, and he performed it without error. He bowed and waited for his score.
I gave him a mid-level score. Previous competitors in the green belt over-30 division had received higher scores.
The man sat down in a slump. I could tell it took everything he had to perform. What I saw in him was incredible courage.
He went through the same process with a weapons kata. He did the same stammering of kata, instructor, and school name. Again, after receiving mid-level scores, he again collapsed in a chair.
After awarding trophies to the winners, I wanted to speak with this man.
