Keep on Keeping on…
A story of Perseverance
Perseverance
It’s third in the list of Tae Kwon Do Tenets. But it is by no means the third most important. It’s one of five pillars that embody the principles of Tae Kwon Do. Knock a pillar out and the foundation becomes unstable.
“To keep on keeping on.”
That’s how one of my teachers in middle school put it. I can’t say I disagree with them either. Perseverance sometimes only comes to mind when we are met with an insurmountable or unbelievable goal that can only be achieved because of perseverance.
Many times we attribute perseverance only to those really tough goals. We say that only through perseverance will we be able to achieve those goals.
It’s not wrong, but perseverance is in our lives in small ways as well.
Those small ways are lifelong habits that we strive to maintain. Brushing our teeth or taking a shower are ones that come to mind immediately. I’m sure you could think of others as well, but if we don’t keep up with these basic habits, they can impede our health and well being.
So, we persevere.
I hadn’t been as thankful as I should have, for the perseverance instilled in me through Tae Kwon Do, until I got older (and continue to get older).
The repetition of doing a basic front kick can become mundane when you’ve done it thousands of times, but there isn’t improvement unless you can push through doing that kick for the hundredth in a row and still endeavor to maintain the same quality as the first kick.
I have two very clear memories in my life of when perseverance took on a new meaning for me. The first was in high school.
Back when I was in high school, the program at W. Kim Tae Kwon Do was a little bit different. In fact, the Black Belt Club only met once a week, on Friday nights. I learned early on that we would be running outside for a few miles in pretty much any kind of weather.
The first time, I couldn’t believe how far we were running and didn’t think I could do it. If it weren’t for the mentorship of a couple older black belts, who I didn’t want to let down, I may have quit running halfway through.
The stitch in my side was killing me, my legs hurt, and it was chilly out, but those mentors encouraged me and I finally understood what it meant to get that second wind.
The other time was in college.
I was involved in the Army ROTC program and we had PT (physical training) early in the morning a few times a week. The captain of our unit felt we needed to do some extra wind sprints at the end of our run that morning. We were all tired and figured we had already finished for the morning.
It was cold out. There was frost on the ground and most of us had stopped being able to feel our fingers. There just happened to be a football field that we ran by when our captain had this revelation. No one wanted to do it, but against all belief even the least physically fit of us did it all. There was a whole lot of group encouragement (mostly yelling at each other) that helped get us through that morning. After that morning, though, PT didn’t seem as hard anymore.
Now, I’m not saying that either of these situations was the hardest or most difficult thing I had to persevere through. They were just two instances that helped shape my outlook on persevering. I believe I’ve done harder and more difficult things since.
One thing I want to point out though, is that through both of these times, I had others encouraging me or helping guide me.
I don’t know for certain that I would have given up if those people hadn’t been there encouraging me, but I think there was a good chance of that happening.
Sometimes there are things in our lives that we know we need to persevere through. We know the results will be worth it but we let other things get in our way and then the goal seems insurmountable.
Whatever the goal might be, tell others what you are struggling through and what you hope to achieve.
Having that extra voice of encouragement or that different perspective can give you the extra motivation you need to “keep on keeping on”.
Photo Credit - Run 4 FFWPU
