“ALWAYS FINISH WHAT YOU BEGIN, BE IT LARGE OR SMALL”
Taekwon students, parents and friends,
Taekwon-Do founder General Choi lists 9 points of the “Philosophy of Taekwon-Do”. Always finish what you begin, be it large or small is number 4 of these Philosophies. It is a very important challenge to “finish what you begin”. Especially in this day and age when things get tough, many give up. It shows in the quality of how each job is done. A job can be done correctly and a job could be done sloppy or incomplete. The way we leave things is a glowing example of how we do things. With everything we do, we can relate finishing well or the other side, not putting forth our best effort.
A story example I heard many years ago was about a chore this young man had as his responsibility. The chore was to carry out the trash when it was full. He had to carry the trash across the yard to the alley and being in a hurry this one day the boy didn’t realize the bag had a hole in it. He completed the task of throwing the trash in the trash can and as he turned to hurriedly run back in the house he noticed the spilled trash on the ground but ignored it! Later the father came home and noticed the trash in the back yard. Guess what happened next? The young man had to clean up the backyard. It seems sometimes we have to repeat lessons until they finally mean enough to us to take action and “finish”. The young man learned to clean up after himself. We all have to take responsibility for our actions and we all should try to help others at each instance.
We need to remind ourselves at every moment of the day. We must help others to take on the challenge as they see our example. It is a disciplined way to get ahead and prepare for things that are going to happen. The experience we gain from finishing a job to the best of our ability is priceless. It will roll over into other simple chores one does daily, and into job performance with our careers. It will help our young people prepare for tests and assignments and have a wonderful step forward.
Maybe the thing about being able to “multi-task” is that all those tasks that we are multiplying turn out to be incomplete. When we are doing a bunch of things at once it is hard to give your best to each one….but by reminding ourselves to finish each thing with our best effort we can become more disciplined in our multi-tasking.
Starting things and not finishing them can really let things add up. Some of us might have a bunch of projects at home that have been started by never finished. This might be especially true with all our parents. As a parent our life is dedicated to making sure our children get the best we can give and that takes time out of our days.
Personally, my wife and I have raised three kids while we were running our TKD school. That was all well and good when the kids were young- we were all at the dojang together. As they became teenagers, they had so much more they wanted to do and that complicated things. When running business there are things that just have to be done. I have always tried my best to give enough time to my family and we’ve had a blast. In order to do that I got use to making lists and planning ahead.
The down time we have travelling from one place to another or when we have time to think, it is a good habit to look ahead and plan. If things don’t get planned, they get pushed off and then they start accumulating. If we plan ahead, we can get all caught up and relieve the stress of unfinished business.
This is a good habit to instill in our kids and the best way is through example. It is difficult because when we tell them to finish a chore or goal, most times our kids consider us nagging them. We have to think about how to get the result from them without being a nag.
I picked this subject this month because it seems to be a reoccurring situation in my life….but most times I do feel ahead of the game. “He who fails to plan plans to fail” is a saying that has stuck with me.
So many things in life are getting easier because of man’s inventions and technology which can make us a bit lazy…we have to figure out a way of helping our young generation to value completing things to the best of their ability.
Respectfully submitted,
Mark Cashatt
CLEAN-UP RT. 113
Four times a year, Mark Cashatt’s TaeKwon-Do School, Inc. is required to clean up their adopted portion of Route 113 from Schoolhouse Road to Allentown Road. For those of us who travel that route a lot, we can see that the roadway needs our attention.
When we do community service like this we learn many lessons. To do something for the reward of personal satisfaction is one thing, but when it’s a kind and generous gesture that helps everyone, it is even more special. To do something that is not exactly easy and a little yucky, like picking up trash, makes us realize how important each one of us is as far as doing our part to help the world. We also learn that cigarette smokers throw their cigarette butts out the window!! Bending over, picking up trash and walking the mile are challenges, too. These challenges help our kids realize hard work is worth it.
On Saturday, April 6th all students and their families can meet at the Franconia Heritage Restaurant parking lot at 7:30 AM. Please come with boots or good shoes and a willingness to pick up trash and help beautify our community. A parent should accompany all children under 12. Our clean up should be over by 9 AM.
We will supply the gloves and trash bags. Please sign up on the dojang bulletin board if you plan on coming.
2019 SPIRIT OF TKD SUMMER CAMP
IS PLANNED!
PICK UP YOUR BROCHURE NOW!
Since 1995, our dojang has been hosting a Taekwon-Do Camp weekend. this is a sleepover weekend at Camp Innabah in Spring City, PA. (1 hour away). This is for all students White Belt through Senior Black Belt, adults and children, age 7 and above.
We sleep in an air conditioned lodge and workout outdoors and in a big gymnasium. The meals are cooked in the mess hall kitchen, catering to all diets and specifications.
It’s a weekend packed full of experiences. Friday we start with a workout while we all get to know each other. At the conclusion of the workout, I explain the rest of the weekend. I announce our theme and our goals. We talk about the free time Saturday with canoeing and outdoor fun. We set up the teams for our TKD Trivia contests and we outline the TALENT SHOW and most times there are wonderful surprises.
Students sleep in rooms that sleep 6. We group by age and dojang- and special requests are honored. We have instructors in charge of each room. Each room must come up with a room “name” to be called upon whenever we start an activity.
We never like to talk about Sunday because that’s the day it ends and we all have to leave this oasis known at summer camp. We work out Sunday morning and are dismissed after lunch, but the memories and the training lead us into the summer with a different feeling of inspiration.
All students are invited but those age 7 & 8 must have special permission from their instructors. We want to make sure each participant is showing signs of an excellent TKD student…not so much with technique but more on self-control and showing respect. It’s a weekend of great honor and pride to train with so many fantastic fellow TKD enthusiasts.
Remember this camp is for adults as well as the kids. We have special family rates. You’ll be hearing a lot about camp the next couple months so please ask questions and sign up ASAP. The dates are May 31, June 1 & 2.
OBSTACLE COURSE
BUDDY NIGHT MARCH 28th!!
Our dojang will be hosting an OBSTACLE COURSE BUDDY NIGHT on Wednesday, April 17th from 6-7 pm. Obstacle courses create a fantastic opportunity to hone skills while working on endurance and good attitudes.
We will create 3 different courses of challenges for all our students and their families.
We are making it a BUDDY NIGHT which means students are encouraged to invite friends. They can be student’s closest friends, cousins, scout pack or soccer team. The skills challenged will be safe and fun.
We will end the Obstacle Course with enough time for students to start to teach their buddies “saju-jirugi”.
Start thinking about who you want to invite to this fun BUDDY NIGHT- so many folks would enjoy such an evening of the TKD OBSTACLE COURSE! Talk to Master Cashatt with any questions.
OUTSTANDING STUDENT OF THE MONTH
Every month Master Cashatt chooses a youth gup (color belt) who has shown outstanding characteristics in class. Every student has a chance to be named once in their gup life. In April every year Master Cashatt names the dojang’s youth “OUTSTANDING STUDENT OF THE YEAR” from the youth roster of the dojang. This promotes a constant reminder for the kids to do their best! This month Master Cashatt has chosen:
RUSSELL VANDERMARK
Rusty has been a student at our dojang for a year now and has earned the rank of Yellow Belt. Rusty takes Taekwon-Do very seriously and it is good to see him have fun as well. He earned this award because of showing perseverance during his journey to Yellow Belt. Congratulations to Rusty and the Vandermark family.
PUT THIS ON YOUR CALENDAR!
APRIL 6…HIGHWAY CLEAN-UP starts at 7:30 am.
APRIL 17…OBSTACLE COURSE BUDDY NIGHT from 6-7 pm
APRIL 27…WORLD TAI CHI DAY BANQUET at our dojang catered by Yantze Chinese Restaurant featuring Tai Chi demonstrations throughout- live orchestra- $30 per person. Tickets available at the dojang reception counter.
MAY 11..MR. LOUIE’S TOURNAMENT in East Petersburg, PA.
MAY 31, JUNE 1 & 2…2019 SPIRIT OF TKD SUMMER CAMP at Camp Innabah.
JUNE 15…DOJANG ADVENTURE- IRON PIGS BASEBALL GAME!! $11 per ticket includes $2 food coupon. Sign up at the dojang to claim your seats.