Randy and I took our
first Hankido Promotional test today. Randy and I were not partners for the
test as we had too much of a weight difference. The partner you choose for
your test is someone that you can work with on partner techniques such as
wrist techniques and throws. Obviously, a partner of the same size is ideal.
My partner was Diane Althoff. She is slightly heavier than I am, but she
is my height. I knew Diane through Jeff, whom I knew through mutual friends.
Randy's partner was John Adams. John is a sophomore at Cal and a trumpet
player.
Before all promotional tests and ceremonies, there is a black-belt meeting
where all the black belts in the club cram into the tiny UCMAP office to
listen to Dr. Min espouse philosophy and doctrine (among other things). The
meeting usually lasts from 30 minutes to an hour. Depending on how many people
are in the room, the thoughts of most black-belts in the room towards the
end of any meeting, no matter how interesting and inspirational, is best
described by the thought balloons in the background. It gets to be a sauna
in there and I imagine that it must be worse in the heavier Hankido uniforms.
I sympathized!
|
|