"The Spirit of Training" --  Brian Gavigan, 5th Gup

Most of you know that I manage to break various parts of my body just in time for testing, so to be able to come together with everyone and test was a reward in itself. I wanted to share my thoughts on Tang Soo Do training and this past test on December 5, 2004.

I think it takes a lot to walk through the dojang door for the first time. I met Master Kaye and everyone in the Penn State Martial Arts Group in the summer of 2003. After the first class I knew I would walk though that door many more times, health permitting. Why? Why do we come to class and put ourselves through something that is physically and mentally demanding? No one is forcing us to come. We all have our respective jobs or studies. Our time is valuable. Is it the work out or the devastating techniques? Yes, initially, but I think it becomes much more. We carve out a piece of space and time to study something that has been developed and tested over many generations, Tang Soo Do. In this study, we are humble before our instructors, we place trust in them to guide us, and we persevere though fatigue and thirst. Through this we learn about ourselves and others. We learn about our spirit, the thing that is you on your most basic level. This knowledge is stored in the way we move and feel. At the test we came together as a group and expressed our common passion for Tang Soo Do. The lower ranks showed their energy and the higher ranks showed us the way. We made a successful test. Each of us had a part in it. We filled that room with our spirit. I felt it and that is why I train.
Tang Soo!

Respectfully Submitted,
Brian J. Gavigan
5th Gup