Dr. Nugent Facebook Message to Coach Ki:
The past year I had too many bruises, aches, lumps, and bumps to count. I put my shooting hobby on the back-burner. I went to as many classes a week as I dare and not get the wife mad. All the beatings I have endured. ALL of that was worth it for our three second hug/embrace tonight!!! I look up to you and am honored to call you my Coach and Teammate. I want to succeed and make you proud as an instructor. Thank you for all the extra coaching, encouragement and humbling submissions. My journey just got so much harder. I feel like a poser as there is SO much I don’t know and the stuff I do know I have a hard time pulling off while rolling. Jumping from a 2 stripe White to a Blue was not expected and I don’t feel I deserved it. However, I know Coach A’s lineage and his personality. He does not give participation trophies. I just have to keep grinding and keep moving forward with my BJJ. Again, thank you for all you have done for me. I appreciate it.
Coach Ki reply:
I couldn’t be prouder of the hard work a dedication you put forward. You have truly earned your belt. Not only do you push your self but you push your teammates forwards and do all you can to propel the school. We are and I am lucky to have you as a teammate. You have made strides and leaps when things clicked and have impressed me on occasion with how well you have been able to incorporate techniques and demonstrate the fact that yes, indeed, you do know jiu jitsu. There are also occasions where I scratch my head and ponder how you ever made it out the door or up the stairs let alone compete in a combat sport. Most of the time we spend in a happy sweet spot somewhere in the middle. You will continue to work your way to that middle area and then start to hang out in a standard deviation towards knowing jiu jitsu with more time. In some ways it gets easier, you know the bulk of the fundamentals and you know what to and not to do. In other ways it will get harder (white belts will be drooling after that fresh blue belt) and all along the way you will love and hate the experience. Just be able to look at yourself and your coaches and say “I tried my best”