Saturday's test will always hold a special place in my heart. There were five candidates, and four of them were members of an extraordinary Keichu family. Cindy Daly and her son Andrew have been black belts for some years; now it was time for her husband and her other three children to test.
By the end of the test, there was absolutely no question in my mind that everyone had passed. During a test, especially a black belt test, I look for several things:
1. Has the candidate demonstrated a confident knowledge of all the material?
2. Is his/her skill, knowledge, and attitude at the level it should be?
3. Is the candidate giving 100% effort?
4. Is the candidate's dedication apparent?
All I can say after watching the Daly family is...WOW. Actually, I can say more than that. When it comes to dedication, I have never encountered anything approaching their level.
The story of the Daly family is one of more obstacles and tragedy than I can fathom. They have had to deal with severe learning disabilities, physical and mental disorders, and a myriad of setbacks and difficulties during their journey to black belt. I am in awe of the fact that they have never given up, but have persevered against staggeringly overwhelming odds. They have persevered, fought hard, trained long and hard, loved beyond measure, and relied on God's grace and mercy to give them the strength not just to endure, but to triumph.
During the test, they threw their whole beings, all their considerable strength, and and their whole hearts into doing well.
I was in awe of their judo and self-defense skills. But, more than that, I was in awe of them, each one of them. I have never met such a family, such beautiful and terrific and transparent people with such love for each other.
Six black belts in one family is amazing enough. But, given how much this family has had to overcome, their accomplishments were truly miraculous. I felt, while Soke was knighting four of them Keichu Warriors, that I was standing on holy ground.
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