Always Bet on Black

I finally got my black belt! It's been a long time coming but I finally did it. It's hard to describe the feeling of having a near 20 year journey come to an end but let me tell you a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. Back when I reached brown belt, I wrote this:

"In other words it doesn't matter what you go through in order to reach your goal, it just matters that you eventually reach your goal. So yeah, even though I haven't taken the shortest possible route to reaching my goal, I know that I will eventually reach that goal and thats the important part to me. "

What I hope you take from my achievement is that dedication, perseverance, and most of all patience pays off. So even though you may have to sail all the way around South America instead of taking the Panama Canal, if you stick to it, you'll eventually get to the other side. Unless you get hijacked by pirates or eaten by sharks.

Never give up on a dream.