Finding What You Like

After Nolan spent over a year expressing interest in learning Karate, I finally signed him up at Five Elements Mountain this past spring and it was a decision that I should have made sooner. Like his father, Nolan has never been interested in team sports.






He tried baseball when he was about seven and spent a lot of time plucking grass. I remember one game that my mom came to watch. Before heading out to the field, she gave Nolan some gum to chew with the instructions: "When you get tired of chewing the gum, don't just spit it out; Bring it to me. I'll put it in some paper and throw it away." Nolan was very obedient. When he was finished chewing the gum he jogged from shortstop, across the third baseline, to the bleachers outside the fence and deposited the wad of gum into his Mimi's hand...during the middle of the inning. Yeah. Baseball wasn't for Nolan. He tried basketball one year and that wasn't for him either. Running Club, with more focus on individual competition, kept him occupied for a few years but that wasn't quite his thing either. It took until his teen years to discover that he loves martial arts.






He's enjoying Karate three times a week and Jiu Jitsu twice a week. I love that he has found something that is completely his own, apart from the rest of the family. We recently watched his belt test at the dojo and saw him level up to the 3rd degree yellow belt.










Because they are kid's classes, in karate, Nolan is one of the oldest but his Jiu Jitsu class is a different kettle of fish. In that mostly adult class, at 14, he is the youngest. Therefore he is always grappling with those that are older and bigger. That keeps him always working harder to overcome and better his skills. This weekend he took part in his first Grappling Tournament and placed 2nd in his division. I think Nolan has found what he likes.


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