Becoming CTI Family

By Amy Krupp, purple belt

My daughter and I joined the Colorado Taekwondo Institute a little over two years ago.  Our main motivation for joining was to learn self-defense skills.  In the two years that have followed, Moo Sul Kwan Taekwondo has evolved into a major part of our lives.  Our family is in the four walls of our dojang 5 out of the 7 days of the week.  A large portion of my yearly vacation time from work is spent traveling with my school, and attending  Taekwondo events, and I love every moment of it.

One of my daughter’s favorite memories from this past summer is attending the Moo Sul Kwan Summer Expo in Keystone, Colorado with me.  MSK Taekwondo has evolved for us from a way to learn self-defense to a way of life.

My daughter was three when she first tied her white belt around her waist.  She learned how to count to ten in Korean not too long after she learned how to do it in English. To this day, she can’t do jumping jacks without counting in Korean while she does it.  The CTI has been instrumental in everything from improving her gross motor skills, to increasing her self-confidence, to instilling in her a love of exercise.  She does well under pressure, due in part to her participation in CTI tournaments.  It has been amazing to watch her grow and mature due to her martial arts training.

My son is two years old and will be joining the CTI family very soon. Although he’s not yet a student, MSK Taekwondo has always been a part of his life.  He was just 6 months old when he came to watch his first CTI tournament.  His big sister has been teaching him poomse in our living room since he could walk.  He learned how to say “Taekwondo” before he could speak in complete sentences.  I can’t wait to see him bow into class for the first time, and officially join the Moo Sul Kwan ranks.

Taekwondo training with my children is an incredibly rewarding experience that is difficult to put into words.  MSK Taekwondo has become one of my greatest passions in life, and having my children take part in it with me is incredible.  They will grow up understanding what it means to be a martial arts student.  They will know the pride that comes with tying a belt around your waist and wearing the Moo Sul Kwan emblem on your back.  They will understand what it feels like to walk into class and have all of your stress melt away.

As a parent, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed with shaping your children into good people, and to wonder if the decisions you made while raising your children were the right ones.  I can say without a shadow of a doubt that joining the Colorado Taekwondo Institute will always be one of those decisions that I know we did right.  Our family is, and always will be, a proud Moo Sul Kwan family.