About a week ago, Ben finally go the OFFICIAL nod to test for his purple belt.
For the uninitiated, belts and their corresponding tests come pretty quickly at first and then they get harder and harder. It’s been over a year since Ben got his orange belt. The fact that he took last summer off slowed him down, but Ben also has some challenges with ADHD that he has been working hard to overcome. Technically, his medicine will have worn off by the time karate class rolls around, but the focus it is allowing him to cultivate when he’s on it seems to have a carry-over effect and apparently, it’s pretty noticeable.
The test took about 1.5 hours.
They had to go through all their forms and really show their stuff.
But what is really crazy (especially if you know Ben) is that he had to spend 20+ minutes of his test meditating. That is sitting.perfectly.still. This is a kid who NEVER sits perfectly still, except when he’s sleeping, or as we say, “recharging.” !!!!
But he persevered through it all, nosebleed included (you can see the aftermath above), and got his belt!!!
I’m not sure who’s prouder of him … us, or himself. Victories like this are amazing for Ben and now, he is at the same rank as his sister, which is pretty darn sweet.