cherry blossom

My cherry blosssom pageant is Saturday. So I'm going to post my speech as a means of practice. =)

"When you think of your average high school girl that does sports, the basics come to mind like basketball, baseball, and cheerleading. I bet Tie Kwon Doe wasn't the first thought to pop into your head, was it?

Well, it wasn't for me either. When my aunt Tonya suggested me joining Burt Brown's Martial Arts school, I found it funny. Imagine if you will, a girl that's been a cheerleader for three years flying through the air, roundhouse kicking through boards like she was Chuck Norris. That's the mental picture I had. But still, I was intrigued about trying something new, so I gave Tie Kwon Doe a chance.

Well. The first day couldn't of gone much worse, from me getting kicked off the matts for wearing shoes, to being embarrassingly awkward and clumsy in learning my whitebelt form, to finally falling after deciding that I was ready to try a complicated kick, bruising my ego and my backside. But suprisingly, after a first day like that I came back, and have been going now for about 2 years.

And I will always remember the seven tennets of Tie Kwon Doe that I learned that first day, elements that I strive to apply to my life daily:
Honor.
Courtesy
Integrity
Perserverance
Self- Control
Courage
Community."