Just checked my email and we already have one winner wohoo! Damn this week is one day old
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Winning story posted with permission from the person.
"Most of my younger life (I'm still a baby, just 18), I spent hidden in the shadows.
I was an ugly duckling that was generally picked on. I spent middle school as
quietly as I could, having been rejected from social groups. I wanted to play sport
for my school but wasn't comfortable with any of my teammates. I sucked it up
because I love the game, and tried out for Softball, Volleyball, and Golf. I made
all three teams, eventually earning three all state titles and seven all conference
titles.
When I was introduced into Jiu Jitsu, I was highly intimidated. I wanted to be in
it for fitness and to force myself into something new, but there were no girls in
the class. I avoided it for some time, opting for only kickboxing, but then
overcame my fear and joined in with the boys. After a month, my coach talked me
into trying out a tournament and I won. Nine months later, he talked me into Pan
Ams and I won. I recieved my blue belt a week later and now I'm open in class,
eager to roll and help any of the new guys and defend my loving title as "Alpha
Bitch." It took time and determination to not give up, being the smallest and
weakest, but I would force myself into the gym on days I didn't really want to
train, and I'm happy for it. My coaches have always been there to push me, and
now I go and train almost everyday, not for a belt and not for a win, but to push
myself to be better.
As I head toward college this fall, I have every intention of setting up a women's
self defense class at my college's gym, using my skills as something more than
just competition. After four years of what will certainly been packed with
homework and little sleep, I hope to attend med school and become, eventually, a
reconstructive plastic surgeon. 12 years of sacrifice will be worth it should I
be able to change someone else's life for the better."
The reason this was a winner was because of these things " My coaches have always been there to push me, and
now I go and train almost everyday, not for a belt and not for a win, but to push
myself to be better" and because she turned towards something positive in Sports when she could have done something else
With that said PLEASE if you over came adversity that's awesome but try and do something with Yamatodmashii this week. I know she will!
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ttt I really want people to try this, I think it's awesome!
I will def try this out...........but, just to clarify the contest is over correct?
anyways, just recently, I had my tournament on saturday (June 16th) and it was my first ever tournament. I have been training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for 9 months now and I was very very veryyy nervous for this tournament. I did not want to compete in it, in the first place. I was too much of a wimp...but then I thought about it, and realized how much time I spent on the mats, all the countless hours of practice. All the drills, and sparring; I couldn't let this go. I said "screw it, lets do this" and went out there and gave it my all.
Unfortunately, I lost the first match and sprained my knee (I collapsed incorrectly from a rear naked choke) and my knee just twisted. I had enough heart to continue and fight 5 more times before I totally gave up.
Here is one picture of me and the knee
http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/2779/img3446pj9.jpg
I can assure you that, this will not stop me from training or competing. I am still young, 16 years old where I was matched up against guys who were as old as 20 to 26....I realized after this competition how pessimistic I am and how badly I treat myself. Well, I have now turned my attitude around and I now will look on the bright side. Right after my match, I was completely depressed that I did not win a medal. My brother told me to keep my head up and he always made fun of me when he still lived with my family. He always said I was to scared to try new things. He always DOUBTED me. After this competition, I received a phone call and my brother congratulated me and I finally was relieved at how proud he was. Also, today when I went to school, everyone congratulated me. I Guess they found out because I wore the tshirt that was given to me from the competition. Never once in my life have I ever felt like I was on top of the world. My self esteem went up...and I was so happy today.
I guess I can stop rambling on about stuff..but I hope you get my point.
Awesome contest, PurebredUSA!
Congratulations, future reconstructive plastic surgeon!
Great job, mackz!
Yamato just means Japanese.
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I will def try this out...........but, just to clarify the contest is over correct?"
HECK NO!! You still got some time. GREAT start btw. It's awesome that you tried and pushed through
"Yamato just means Japanese."
Yes and Yamatodamashii literally means japanese spirit but if you speak Japanese you will know that it has MANY nuances. Like ichizoku for examlpe can mean group of friends, crew or family. Everything has a literal meaning and an actual meaning in translation.
I wrote about this on another thread but I will copy it here.
I know most of you probably know this but bare with me as it's my hypothesis on why Enson got this nick name.
Japanese people are naturally smaller in stature and in WWII they were out numbered by the Chinese and Koreans, not to mention the much bigger US forces. The Japanese propaganda machine would say that the people could overcome the bigger greater adverseries with Yamatodamashii, or Japanese Spirit/Heart.
How this relates to Enson,
Enson isn't that big of a guy especially for a heavy weight. If you meet him you will understand what I'm talking about. The first thing I noticed about him was that he wasn't that big. If you meet Josh Barnet, Randy Couture or any other heavy weight they're very intimidating because of there size and stature. Enson, not so much. Not to mention, he wasn't a championship wrestler, world champion kickboxing or anything when he started. He was athletic, he played racquet ball where he was ranked 27th in the world and played baseball but not to the degree as his opponents. 27th in the world is Awesome but compared to some one who is 6'3 220+ and a Olympic caliber wrestler there should be no way in hell Enson had a chance. Yet he won, he beat Couture and fought the biggest and best heavy weights at the time.
He beat people, based on his heart, which enabled him to endure lot's of hard training and gave him a never give up attitude. Here was a smaller guy who with Yamatodamashii overcame greater opponents and obstacles and allowed him to face his fears. He fought Igor when Igor was just destroying people. Not only did he fight him he stayed in the middle of the ring and traded with him!!
In an interview he talked about how it was an honor that a lot of Japanese people considered Enson more Japanese then them because of his spirit.
When you talk with him you get a sense of it. Enson may not be the greatest or best in the world at anything but because of the way he lives his life the Yamatodamashii way he has achieved greatness in the ring and in life.
I don't know if that makes any sense, these opinion's are my own.
Yamatodamashii spirit and the Yamatodamashii way transcends Japanese culture and can be used and applied in every day life. You don't have to be Japanese to have it, kind of like how you don't have to be brazilian to do good in BJJ.
and I believe yamato is an older word too(now they just use nihon or nippon) and isn't in use anymore to mean Japanese so the connotation is that of the spirit of old japan.
TTT y'all! good stories; please keep them coming. they are motivating. this is also interesting to learn of the origin of yamatodamashii and people who exemplify it in their lives. do other cultures have some similar concept?
I seek to incorporate yamatodamashii into my heart and mind. breathe in and breathe out...
"and I believe yamato is an older word too(now they just use nihon or nippon) and isn't in use anymore to mean Japanese so the connotation is that of the spirit of old japan."
Yes, this is why a lot of people associate it with Bushido principles as they were intwined with the old spirit of Japan. Talking about old Japanese, that's the main reason why the translation of the 10 commandment shirt is soooooo hard as a lot of the Japanese text used is older.
I think Yamatodamashii and the yamatodamashii way cross cultural boundaries and that everyone can live a bit of the principles in there life.