Every year on January 1 our karate class practices a Japanese tradition called Hatsu Geiko. We all gather at our dojo to perform 1000 kicks together. After every 100 kicks our Sensei would ask someone randomly to tell what motivates them to keep on going to karate class even when they know it’s going to be hard.
I just knew she might call on me if I didn’t think of something to say. So the whole time I was kicking I was writing my answer in my head.
My husband and I have been married 16 years. When we first met we were skinny little things. My husband had taken various martial arts off and on before we had met.
Then married life hit us along with good cooking and bad eating habits. I don’t have very many pictures of those days. When we were expecting our second child, my husband would come home from work and just lay down on the floor and let our almost two year old son just crawl over him. That was all the energy he had back then. He knew he needed exercise. So he joined a Tae Kwon Do class. I just watched.
Then we were faced with a move a few months later after our daughter was born. We didn’t join any courses for a while but then my husband wanted to find another class in our new location. He found one that met at a YMCA and we both joined that time. My parents watched the babies while we went one night a week to karate classes.
We moved again! This time we didn’t find another dojo for a while. I started gaining a lot of weight. I wanted to have a 3rd child but it didn’t seem to be the Lord’s will.
I was depressed! I tired easily. My back and neck both hurt.
After about a year of being depressed, I decided to see a doctor. According to his diagnosis there was nothing wrong with me.
I gave up.
Most of the time giving up is a bad thing. This time it was good.
I quit worrying about not having another child. I decided I would just be happy with the two I already had.
I joined a local exercise place for women. I started losing weight. My husband decided he wanted to lose weight as well and found another martial arts school.I could have just let my husband do Martial Arts while I continued my own routine. However I had read in a Marriage book once that it was good for wives to participate in their husband’s hobbies. I decided to join him in Tae Kwon Do.
Then came Baby #3.
Then we moved!
Yes, we moved again. This time my husband had a very physically challenging job so he didn’t really need the extra exercise. I was expecting our 4th baby and decided walking up the stairs where we lived was exercise enough.
Then we moved again! This time we moved to our present location. We lived here for about a year and a half before I decided we needed to find another place to exercise.
It was about the time Hannah was 4 and wanted to be a football player. I knew she needed a sport and the rest of the family could use some exercise as well. I talked to my husband and he started calling martial arts classes in nearby towns. That’s when we found our present karate family.
Now what keeps me going to karate class?
I’m not exactly what people imagine in a martial artist. You look at me and you see a mother with a whole bunch of kids! I’m not exactly the karate kid. I didn’t even do sports in school.
I do this because I believe that it’s not only good for me to join my husband in the hobbies he enjoys. It’s also good for us to teach our children that we can do things as a family. If mom is sitting on the sidelines or going shopping while the rest of the family works out what message am I giving my kids?
I think that we mothers need to have fun with our families. Even as I get older I can show my kids that I can still have fun.
How about your family? Is there a hobby that y’all enjoy doing altogether as a family? If not can you think of something you can start doing together?
Please share your thoughts in the comments. I’d love to hear what your family does together for fun.
I am setting my goals on a monthly basis this year. I have a few goals for the year but mostly I’m going to reevaluate monthly. So for the month of January I’ll be trying to post two blog posts a week. I also plan to write one devotional a week. I also plan to write one short story book.
And that’s just my writing goals. I have plenty of family goals for this year as well. Including keeping the dishes out of the sink. Laundry is a whole nother matter. I think I can. I think I can.
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How fun! I used to do Tae Kwon Do when I was a teen and I’d love to get back into it with my boys someday!
It’s a lot of fun, Stacy! Some instructors let you try it out for free. You should give it a whirl. 🙂
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