We took Noah to a trial karate class tonight. I got a coupon to try free for a week, then a free uniform. So tonight we had our free trial.
We learned to bow when we enter the building, and bow when we step onto the mat. I say “we” because the parents are expected to do the same to set a good example for the kids. We were addressed as “Mr. Hoffman” and “Mrs. Hoffman” and we were expected to address the adults as “Mrs. Voelske” and “Mr. Tyriver” to set a good example. I thought I had heard somewhere how martial arts teaches respect!
Noah then had his individual lesson with Mr. Tyriver. It started out a little shaky, with Mr. Tyriver repeating himself several times to get Noah to sit still, cross-legged with his hands on his knees. And it was also difficult for Noah to remember to say “Yes, sir” and “No, sir.” Noah got to practice jumping into defense stance, saying “Ay yah!” when he jumped. And he got to practice kicking and blocking, always saying “Ay yah!” (when he remembered!). By the end of the class, Mr. Tyriver didn’t have to repeat himself to get Noah to sit correctly. Maybe this is the chance we were looking for to help with his listening issues!
We then sat down with Mrs. Voelske to figure out all of the details of their program. Long story short, we left there with a few hundred dollars less in our bank account, but with a cool new karate outfit for Noah with the promise of a white belt after his first official class. So much for “free”! We’ve committed for 6 months. We’ll see how it goes. We think he’ll have a good time. And Andy and I have decided that if this does what we’re hoping it will do, it was worth the money. I’m optimistic.
  
  