My youngest son just passed his test for his yellow-striped belt in karate.  For those of you to whom it means anything, he takes lessons in Okinawan karate.  I've read a little bit on it, but not enough to be anywhere close to an expert.

 He likes me to go watch when they take their tests.  It is the one sports type thing in which he excels, and that he's managed to hold an interest in for longer than a month or so, so I watch, and I am properly proud of him for doing so well.

 I've learned a few things, though, from my infrequent forays into the world of karate:

 If you work hard, you will be rewarded for your efforts.  Yes, I know that the cynical adults among us, me included, have learned otherwise, but in the small, insular world that he orbits in, this is still true.  The reward may be small, and it may not mean much to anyone but you, but you will move up, and the child that started the year at the bottom of the pecking order, belt-wise, is now nipping at the heels of the students that started the year so far ahead of him.  Even older students haven't kept up with him, and he's holding his head a little higher than he used to. This makes me smile.

Learning to excel at one thing will give you the drive to excel at others. He started the year overwhelmed by math.  Three months ago I got a progress report that showed that he was failing, and no matter how many times I worked with him at night, or how many problems he worked, it just didn't seem to click for him.  I had started thinking I may have to look into finding a tutor to help him, but then he got into the car after school one day and announced that he'd made a 95 on his math test.  Not only that, he knew exactly which problem he'd missed, and why he'd missed it (carelessness). 

Math homework is no longer something to be dreaded, but something that is done with a snap of his fingers, and a smile on his face.  This makes me smile, too...not so much the grades, although I've breathed more than one sigh of relief, but the fact that he gets math, and likes it.

Two friends can be head over heels over the same girl, and still be friends.  My son and his current best friend, Jacob, both have a crush on the same girl: Stephanie.  She is much sighed over, discussed, and they plot together on how best to get her attention.  Together.

 All three take karate together, and young heathen and Jacob both fall all over themselves trying to bring her water, compliment her karate style, even trying to stand next to her so that the lovely Stephanie might glance at them from time to time.

Both of them are aiming for an older woman.  Stephanie is twelve, while the two boys are nine and ten.

 Grown-ups could learn something from this.  Love isn't a competitve sport.

Hot girls take karate. My son has had three crushes this year, although the goddess Stepanie has lasted the longest.  The other two were also in his karate class: Allie and Heather.  I have been informed, countless times that all three are "hot."  Of course, youngest heathen only has eyes for one right now.

He's a gentleman: opens doors for her, brings her water, and saves her the choicest morsels from their snacks.

 He makes me so proud.