Master Joe,

In late December I sat down and made a list of things I wanted to accomplish in 2005 (I don’t do resolutions, to do lists work much better for me) and then prioritized it, at the top of the list was to start taking some sort of Martial Art. I have to admit, I chose Kung Fu because my mom and I used to watch the old David Carradine show in reruns together and it reminded me of her. I chose your school specifically because it was close to my home and I wanted to have no excuses not to attend. 

I believe it was fortuitous that I came to your school, the atmosphere is incredibly supportive. I had played team sports from age 4 throughout college, I remember being in shape, but somewhere in the years after college, I got way out of it. The encouragement I received was exactly what I needed, “do as many as you can do, and tomorrow, do one more.” All the teachers bring a little something different to the class and their perspectives are wonderful.

In a brief two and a half months, I am stronger, fit, and surprisingly calmer—that is less stressed—than I have ever been in my life. But if you want something more quantitative, I went from having borderline high blood pressure to 116 over 68 with a 63 resting pulse, I haven’t had a resting pulse below 75 in 12 years.

Thank you so much.

Sincerely,

Molly Hollern