Rafael Fernandez: How My Journey To Black Belt Has Changed My Life

How My Journey To Black Belt Has Changed My Life By Rafael Fernandez for Junior Black Belt Grading December 2023

Hello everyone my name is Rafael Fernandez and today I am challenging

for my junior black belt. This speech is about how my journey to black

belt has changed my life. Engaging in my journey to black belt has

transformed my attitude towards family instilling essential qualities and

values such as patience, honesty and commitment into my home life. It

has also changed my attitude towards school work as I am more focused

and resilient when things don’t work out the way I planned. It has made

me more determined to succeed.

My understanding of the dojo values is that I appreciate the things I have,

and help people when they need it. These values have made me a better

person. I learned as a Kindymite (5-6yrs) and Dynamite (6-9yrs) to follow all the powerful

words or words of the month and now it has helped develop my

philosophy and character. I am now confident in how I face challenges and

persevere through tough times. Throughout my journey, I have

accomplished a few things that I am proud of. For instance, I have

achieved my black belt in both Kindymites and Dynamites. Additionally, I

have also earned my Shodan in Dynamites.

Some leadership skills I have in karate are assisting in classes at the dojo

to help other students and demonstrating key concepts with kata and

basic techniques. I started karate when I was 3 so I don’t remember life

before Karate. Even though I don’t, karate has still changed me as a

person. Being part of this community has helped me develop my

leadership skills and prepared me to take on new challenges. As a result

of this growth, I decided to put myself forward as a candidate for school

councillor, and I am proud to say that I am now serving in that role at

school.

My goals in life are to have a positive growth mindset, to persevere,

always to challenge myself and work hard to succeed in whatever my

future holds.

I am grateful to everyone who has helped me throughout my black belt

journey. I want to thank my whole family who has played their special

part in getting me to where I am today whether it is telling me to never

give up or helping me with my bunkai. I would also like to thank my

karate family, Sensei Kelie, Sensei Anna, Sensei Romany, Sensei Rhee and

Kyoshi. A special thank you to Sensei Anna my black belt prep teacher

who has helped me improve, grow and develop my karate skills and

technique. Thank you everyone for listening to my speech you must be

getting tired of my voice by now so goodbye and thank you.