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Parental influence on children
Parental influence on children
Parental influence on children
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Let me begin by sharing to you The Parable of the Black Belt. A young martial artist kneeling before the Master Sensei in a ceremony to receive a hard-earned black belt. After years of relentless training, the student has finally reached a pinnacle of achievement in the discipline. "Before granting the belt, you must pass one more test," says the Sensei. "I am ready," responds the student, expecting perhaps one final round of sparring. "You must answer the essential question: What is the true meaning of the black belt?" "The end of my journey," says the student. "A well-deserved reward for all my hard work." The Sensei waits for more. Clearly, he is not satisfied. Finally, the Sensei speaks. "You are not yet ready for …show more content…
It is an achievement shared by many groups of people who have likewise endured with us. Allow me to say thank you to all the parents, grandparents, relatives and guardians who have painstakingly cared for all the graduates. You have given us your unconditional love. You have guided and supported us emotionally and financially. When the times were hard, you were there to believe us. You made us sustain our belief in ourselves. And when we fail, you have assured us. You have spent the majority of your lives making things easy for us, making sure that we have the best of …show more content…
Palagi ninyong sinisigurado na kumpleto ang aking pangangailangan. Pinalaki ninyo ako ng maayos. Tinatanaw ko itong malaking utang na loob na hindi ko kailanman mahihigitan. Pinapangako ko na hindi ko malilimutan ang mga aral na ibinahagi ninyo sa akin. Panahon na para kayo naman ang aking paglingkuran. Mahal na mahal ko po kayo. I also like to thank my Southville family: my mentors and peers. We are so privileged to have been molded by the best mentors. You have brought out the best in all of us. You did not only help us learn, you have also made us more human. Through your examples, you have given us a core set of values that would allow us to be movers of society and men and women who will make a difference in the world. Ms. Joji dela Peña, thank you for editing and improving my valedictory address. Your expertise made the words more beautifully interwoven. It was very kind and noble of you to help me with the speech even though it was such a short notice. Ms. Joji, thank you very much! I like to personally thank my dean, Dr. Virginia Caneo. Doc Gina, thank you for the mentoring that you have given me. You were more than just my mentor. You were my mother, my adviser and my personal nagger. You have pushed me by believing in me even when I doubted myself. Thank you very
I want to thank you, Dr. Sherry, for all the effort and support you provide to the students. I learned a lot from having you as a Professor, and I’m looking forward having you as a Professor in my other
As the cessation of the century approached, Rhee had accomplished more than he had ever hoped, garnering awards and apperceptions virtually too numerous to count. He had been denominated one of President George Bush’s Daily Points of Light. His ebony belt students included not only Members of Congress, but eminent figures like Tony Robbins, Jack Valenti, and Jack Anderson. He had appeared on the cover of Parade magazine with Cheryl Tiegs. And he had been designated by Ebony Belt magazine as one of the top two living martial artists of the 20th Century.
The workout portion was after all, the most strenuous part. The other forms and kicking combination portion was elementary memorization. Two months into training, I was extremely anxious regarding whether I would be ready for Black Belt test in time. But with Mister Alex's words of assurance I stayed headstrong and determined to pass the test. After working hard with Mister Alex as well as on my own at home for the minimum six months, Mister Alex said I was "definitely ready to take and pass the Black Belt test." When Mister Alex told me this I felt nervous about the veracity of his words. I had been in training for the minimum 6 months only. The average training period at my karate institution was actually 8 months. I felt under prepared for the test, but I was only kidding myself by undermining my
The class begins with middle punches. This entails bringing the left foot out into a sitting stance where our legs reflect a person riding a horse. The hip is rotated backwards then propelled forwards as the fist on the belt twists towards our imaginary opponent in front of us. Then Master Copper pairs each student with a partner of equal height to practice kicks. When my partner extends his sidekick, the crusty dirt on the sole of his foot brushes past my eyes, and the speed of the kick creates a breeze of stale air. In the middle of class, we incorporate the punching bags into our workout. The low belts use the tall, thin sun colored bag, and the high belts utilize the thick, blood colored bag. However, the black belts utilize “Bob the Bully”, the tan, lifelike bag with dense padding and broad shoulders. After six hours of school and at least four hours of homework, punching and kicking the toned face and rippling abs of Bob brings a substantial amount of satisfaction. As my knuckles make contact with Bob’s rigid jaw, I grit my teeth and each blow connects with more power than the last. Beads of sweat roll down my face as Bob’s head shifts from side to side following each blast of force. The instep of my foot creates indents in the sides of Bob as my half turning kicks
Going to class everyday without fail, reviewing and completely perfecting the five years of curriculum I had so carefully worked through, to the point where everything was completely automatic, and preparing for the fifty push-up requirement, were not enough. The black-belt test requires creativity through my creation of a personal kata and a self-defense to every attack I had learned. Beyond this, physical endurance and stamina are required in order to spar for ten minutes straight at the end of the four hour test, with a fresh opponent every minute. The black-belt test was the most physically grueling challenge I had ever faced and was much more mentally exhausting than any academic
I wanted to thank Ms. Geary for reminding me how much writing can do for me. It helped me realize that writing isn’t so horrible but it is just hard work. My writing skills have improved due to this class and all Ms. Geary had taught me. She made class fun with her inflections and just the way she says everything, her personality definitely showed through. I looked forward to class but never the homework. Finally after reading over my final drafts of: My Past as a Writer, Problematic Essay and my Exploratory Research Paper I realize that I have dramatically improved my writing skills in every draft thanks to revisions and some positive criticism for Ms. Geary. I think I am now ready to take on the next step in the English world.
He is told that he will be fighting in a battle royal before giving his graduation speech. Before the Civil War, the plantation owners would put blindfolds on their slaves and have them fight until only one was standing. What these white men were doing was enjoying themselves at these young black men’s expenses. Even though the young black man excels at his college and is an honorable young man, he is nothing more than entertainment for the important, racist, white men. At the end of the match, the young black man is one of
Thanks Miss Smith for making Science, History, Art, Drama, and Tech amazing classes. You are a wonderful teacher who makes learning fun, and I appreciate that. Furthermore, thank you Mr. Rague. Without your help, this speech would not have been written. You push every single one of your students to do their best since you know what all of us are capable of. Also, thank you Mr. Hall. I look forward to gym every Wednesday and Monday since you make it extremely amusing. Thank you to Mr. Block as well for helping me understand math better and for leading the 7/8th grade girls to winning the championship. Lastly, thank you Mrs. Rague. Before health class started, I did not know much about the heart, the food groups, the lungs, etc., but with your help I am basically a pro on all of the subjects. Thank
CLAP, CLAP, CLAP, CLAP, echoes through my head as I walk to the middle of the mat. "At 160lbs Aidan Conner of La Junta vs. Rodney Jones of Hotchkiss." All I can think of is every bead of sweat, every drip of blood, every mile, every push up, every tear. Why? All of this: just to be victorious. All in preparation for one match, six minutes. For some these six minutes may only be a glimpse, and then again for some it may be the biggest six minutes of their life. Many get the chance to experience it more than once. Some may work harder and want it more than others, but they may never get the chance. All they get is a moral victory. Every kid, every man comes into the tournament with a goal. For some is to win, for some is to place, others are just happy to qualify. These six minutes come on a cold frigid night in February at a place called the Pepsi Center. Once a year this gathering takes place when the small and the large, the best of the best, come to compete in front thousands of people. I am at the Colorado State Wrestling Championships.
Once upon a time, I qualified for the Tae Kwon Do State Championships, to go to the Tae Kwon Do Junior Olympics in Orlando, Florida. It was my second year at the Jr. Olympics, and I was competing in two events. Sparring and forms. Forms has always been my favorite, partly because I was pretty good at doing them. Sparring was okay. I guess.
Today, as we graduate, with degree nearly in hand, I challenge each of you to make a difference in whatever you do. Remember that life didn't end when we re-entered school. Life continued throughout our program. Even when stretched to the limit, life only got more challenging. And now, graduating, life only changes pace. Our degree completion is not really an ending as much as a new beginning as we re-enter our lives of work and home. We thank all of our family, friends, instructors and co-workers who helped see us through this process. Thank you for this opportunity and good luck to you all.
Now I would like to take the time to thank everyone who has helped me get this far. First of all, thank you to all the teachers. None of us would be here without you always pushing our academic abilities to the fullest. Jessica Parker a.k.a. my partner in crime as Mr. Tri would refer to us. You made everyday coming to school worthwhile. Hillary Laswell, who would leave third period to go steal flowers from horticulture and give them to Mrs. Granillo with me. My brother Jeramie who always said, "If anyone is mean to you, I'll take care of it." My Mom, thank you for always believing in me and putting up with me when I was a real jerk.
The main reason I wanted to make a speech was to personally say thank you to some very special people who have contributed to today:
My opponent’s name was John Doe. There were other competitors at the tournament, but they had never posed any threat to my title. For as long as I had competed in this tournament, I had easily taken the black belt championship in my division. John, however, was the most phenomenal martial artist I had ever had the honor of witnessing at my young age of thirteen. And he was in my division. Although he was the same rank, age, size, and weight as I, he surpassed me in almost every aspect of our training. His feet were lightning, and his hands were virtually invisible in their agile swiftness. He wielded the power of a bear while appearing no larger than I. His form and techniques were executed with near perfection. Although I had never defeated his flawlessness before, victory did not seem unattainable. For even though he was extraordinary, he was not much more talented than I. I am not saying that he was not skilled or even that he was not more skilled than I, for he most certainly was, but just not much more than I. I still had one hope, however little, of vanquishing this incredible adversary, for John had one weakness: he was lazy. He didn’t enjoy practicing long hours or working hard. He didn’t have to. Nevertheless, I had found my passage to triumph.
For the past 13 years of our education we have been on a journey - a journey full of experiences, challenges and accomplishments. We have made it through elementary, middle and high school. It hasn't always been what we expected and certainly not easy, but as we progressed down the road, we stretched ourselves to reach across barriers and found ourselves in new and expanding roles. We were given the opportunity to explore our interests and discover what really excites us. We have become more independent and complete individuals. Our growth and self-discovery has placed us here tonight.