I passed my—I think it’s the 10th Tae Kwon Do test Saturday, so now only two more to black belt. I began this in Cambridge, at age 34, and with fits and starts, after 6 instructors and all 3 Tae Kwon Do federations, have finally made some progress. Am I really very good? Well, let’s say that of all my hobbies, this is my single worst.
As a legacy of many decades of being last chosen for sports teams, being cut from other sports teams, being the slowest runner on the phy ed track, and losing just about every spots competition I ever had the foolishness to try—athletic endeavors clearly have not brought me great self-esteem. Here, too, I’m clearly among the weakest. I could give the excuse that I’m also the oldest in the club at 42, but that’s not really the only reason. I realize I’m slow and inflexible, always have been, and speed, flexibility and resultant coordination are essential to performance in any athletic sport.
Despite that, through persistence and work through setbacks, I was able to overcome one of my most severe weaknesses, and learned to swim reasonably well (though not competitively, being one of the slowest). And despite some pretty glaring weaknesses, I’ve been able to advance in the very difficult sport of Tae Kwon Do. So I suppose one can conclude from this that pursuing sports for self-goals is worth while in itself, and keeps your healthy and alert. I still cringe at competition, however, and avoid it here whenever possible. In fact, when I dragged myself to the Fargo one last fall, I proved the old standard built through decades of athletic underachievement still stands true: I cam in last of my age group.
— Feb. 17, 1997, Fargo, North Dakota
OtD 