Going Against the Grain

by Jen

Exciting things going on at the gym. We got new mats so we have more space for our growing class.

Marcelo added a few new classes to the schedule too. Check out Logan in the video to advertise the new kids MMA class.

I am so proud to see how hard she is working and how well she is doing. What makes it even better is to see how happy she is with the training.

I have always admired Logan's ability to go against the grain. This is becoming even more apparent as she begins her teenage years. I am proud to say that she is the one that will stick up for what is right, even if it means going against the crowd. She also chooses to do her own thing rather than go with passing trend.

Take for instance the new hobby taken up by her friends and mine - Zumba. I was afraid that she might feel like she was missing out, so I offered her a chance to jump on the Zumba train. She looked at me with a puzzled face and responded with, "Uh, no thanks."

Now let me clear this up, there is nothing wrong with Zumba. From what I hear, it is a fun and demanding work out. It is just not something that we are interested in. Most importantly, though, a night at Zumba could take her away from a night on the mats.

I have worked in social services for more than 9 years now, and spent most of that time at a domestic violence agency that strongly promoted non violence. With their lack of understanding of bjj, I sometimes wonder what my friends and co-workers think about my training, and my encouragement of my daughter's training. Honestly though, I have come to the point where I don't care. For more than two years this has been a major part of my life. It's something they will just have to learn to accept. No matter how awful my day, I feel a sense of peace when I step on the mat. Who wouldn't want that for their friend?