Essay
Nathaniel Sizemore
The Hardest Thing

No class March 15, 2023

Trillium TKD students,

I will be out of town this week, so we will not be having class this week. We’ll be back in the dojang (the Korean word for ‘gym’ or ’training hall’) on Wednesday, March 22, 2023.

While I’m traveling, I won’t have access to my normal exercise routine — but I’ll still keep training, and so can you! This week, challenge yourself to do at least three sets of the following workout, three times this week:

Darebee.com's Power Mode Workout

(You’ll recognize most of these exercises from class, but you can also see a video of these movements at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sp5cOai5klU.) And when you’re done with those exercises, do one right four-direction punch, and one left four direction punch drill. Remember to think about stepping back and blocking as the preparation for driving the following punch forward! If you need a refresher, Ms. Christine Young has an excellent video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4WctUWigY8

Have a great week, and keep challenging yourself — if you don’t tend to your garden regularly, it will soon become overgrown with weeds and will not produce the fruits that you want.

New Date and Time: Wednesdays, 6:00 PM!

In order to make it easier for more people to train, Trillium Taekwon-Do will be holding classes on Wednesdays at 6:00 PM. This new schedule goes into effect starting September 7, 2022. We’ll still be at the Community Wellness Center in Marlinton.

Hopefully, this change will make it easier to fit regular training into the puzzle of work, school, and other commitments.

Grand Master Charles Sereff, 1933-2022

Grand Master Charles Sereff, 1933-2022

I attended many seminars, workshops, at testings at Grand Master Charles Sereff’s dojang, and not a day goes by that I don’t use some aspect of the skills and attitudes my training there helped me to develop and refine. One might expect that the president of the United States Taekwon-Do Federation — a national organization with schools all over the country — would have a large, impressive place to train. Sereff Taekwon-Do, however, is a humble building, tucked into a corner and easy to miss. From the outside, it does not give the appearance of a place that trained the world-class martial artists whose photos grace the walls.

The skills, knowledge, and expertise that made those competitors and instructors is not in the building, of course — it is in the people that teach and train there, the men and women that push themselves every day, striving always to be better. That attitude flowed from Grand Master Charles Sereff. He was a person that made you want to set standards for yourself impossibly high, and try every day to exceed them. Thanks to his dedicated efforts, countless students all over the country learned the art of Taekwon-Do. We push ourselves harder, trying to improve ourselves with study and practice. We try to act with courtesy, humility, and respect for all. We attempt to build a more peaceful world.

Left to right: Mr. Walt Lang, General Choi Hong-Hi, Mr. Charles Sereff, Mr. Rob Tobin

I can trace my own instruction from a series of dedicated teachers, beginning with General Choi Hong-Hi, to Mr. Charles Sereff, and then to Mr. Walt Lang, Mr. Rob Tobin, and finally to my own instructor, Mr. Jonas Pologe. Without GM Sereff’s decades of teaching, I would not be where I am now. Not only would my martial arts studies have not progressed, but all of the mental and physical benefits I have received from those decades training would have been lost. GM Sereff passed down a priceless gift to me, a debt I can only repay by passing it on to others.

General Choi wrote that instructors of Taekwon-Do should, “Be the eternal teacher who teaches with the body when young, with words when old, and by moral precept even after death.” Grand Master Sereff embodies that ideal.

Class canceled for Feburary 2022

While the current Omicron wave appears to have peaked nationally, West Virginia is still seeing rising numbers of COVID-19 cases and breaking hospitalization numbers records daily. In light of those trends, we will not be holding classes for February. Hopefully, in another month we will start to see improvements in the data and less risk to our community.

I’ve chosen a new challenge from https://darebee.com/challenges.html to help keep me motivated while I eagerly await returning to the gym. Stay warm, keep training, and hopefully we’ll all be back in the dojang in March.

Class canceled for January 2022

COVID-19 cases are currently twice the previous record in West Virginia, and hospitalizations are beginning to increase as well. While it is encouraging that the death rate is not currently tracking the increase in cases, it may be too soon to tell what the full impact of this latest wave will be. Given that we’ve already seen outbreaks in the schools and major employers in the county, I do not believe it is prudent to hold in-person classes at this time. We’ll hopefully pick back up the first week of February.

Many people assume that the difficult parts of Taekwon-Do are learning the patterns, or the sometimes-grueling amounts of push-ups or drills we do, sparring, or some other physical aspect of the martial arts. I believe that those are the easy bits; it is far harder to act with integrity, to always demonstrate self-control.

It’s easy to look at this situation as a setback; we don’t have the opportunity to train with others, to work on step sparring or self-defense drills or simply enjoy working out with others. However, I encourage you to use our current situation to your advantage. We’ve been given an opportunity to work on different skills. Can I force myself to do a bodyweight workout at home, even when nobody is telling me to do it? Can I do patterns in the snow, in the cold wid? Can I take the time to go through my Taekwon-Do notebook and write down questions for the next time we do have class? Can I demonstrate perseverance and integrity?

Keep training.

Class canceled 2022-01-04

Due to the sharp rise of COVID-19 cases, Trillium TKD will not be holding class on Tuesday, January 4th, 2022.

Unfortunately, the rate of new cases of COVID-19 is as high as it has ever been in the state. While we were able to hold class outdoors during the last wave of infections in the late summer and fall, at this time I do not believe it is wise to hold class indoors.

We will have to wait and see what impacts this new wave brings, and adapt accordingly. You cannot control the actions of your opponent in a sparring match; you can only control yourself, and what you do in response. Observe, orient, decide, act.

Please stay safe, and continue training!

Training Day

Mr. Sizemore will not be in class on Tuesday, April 27th, 2021, due to a scheduling conflict with work. Students are encouraged to use the time and space to work on patterns and anything they might think needs some extra focus and attention. The Deck of Many Exercises is also a fine motivator (and a good workout!) if someone wants to bring some cards and work out together.

Remember to abide by current health and safety rules for the Rec Center.

Classes postponed for December

The Pocahontas County school system is operating their remote learning schedule this week due to continuing spread of COVID-19. Trillium Taekwon-Do will continue to follow these guidelines. Additionally, given the increasing likelihood of further community spread as well as the upcoming Christmas and New Year holidays, we will be postponing classes for the entire month of December.

It is my hope that we’ll be able to resume in-person classes beginning January, 2021. Until then, enjoy the season, stay safe, and continue to train! I’ll be posting some recommendations and ideas for training at home — mentally and physically — in the coming weeks.