G O L D

this is what i posted on facebook this morning as i rode a cab on my way to work.  the caloocan division meet in taekwondo was held yesterday and the little big man got a silver.  i've been putting off posting the result since last night coz i didn't know how to "announce" to the world the result.  coz when you think about it, when you get a silver, it means you didn't get the gold.

the little big man did NOT get the gold.  but migo knew he got the gold.  we knew he got the gold, our coach knew he got the gold, the referee knew he got the gold.  DAMN IT, EVEN HIS OPPONENT KNEW MIGO GOT THE GOLD.

but he didn't.  the scorers didn't see it the way everybody else saw it.

and that's what makes me want to give out a prolonged high-pitched cry of a combination of pain, grief and anger.  had he gotten the gold, he would've been on his way to the NCR (national capital region) games where if he won, he would've gone on to compete in palarong pambansa.  which is what he has always wanted.

sigh.

i remember myself praying repeatedly in my head "ibigay mo sa kanya 'to Lord, ibigay mo sa kanya 'to Lord.." the whole time i was recording on video the game.  when i saw the final decision, i wanted to break down but i held on and completed recording.  i looked at the little big man's face void of emotion.  but i knew, i knew, he was too disappointed to speak. 

but i know too that God's reason for this is that He has far more opportunities to give to my little big man.  the way he has matured in this game, the way he has worked hard to be where he is now, i know that soon he will realize his dream of becoming an undisputed champion.

for now, the gold is his determination to move on and keep training and learning and doing his best.  he has that gold.

i'm never gonna give up the way i know he will never give up.  just you wait and see.

Sometimes by losing a battle, 

you find a new way to win the war.

~ Donald Trump

the prize

he had the most maangas na hairstyle at the  Region 3 Age Group Taekwondo Championship.

but it was  all he had to show.  on the first round of his first match with an opponent he beat at his last tournament in nueva ecija, he was a hesitant, blundering, clueless little big man.  first round, the score was tied at 1-1.  after the time-out, he came back with a little fire hitting 4 consecutive points but got head kicked and ended the second round with a 4-4.  

so it was sudden death.  (for no-tkd-background readers, it's the tie-breaker.)  coincidentally, my videocam ran out of disk space (note to self:  clean out memory cards before games!)  so i watched in frustration as i saw my champion son backing off the whole time instead of attacking his opponent.  everyone -- me, hubby, teammates, parents, coach -- were literally screaming at him to attack, but he did nothing.

i can still hear our teammates and the parents' sigh of disappointment.  i can still feel my hand touching hubby's arm to calm him down as he lashed in dismay at the son.  i can still run over and over in my head the look on the little big man's face as he broke into tears when the referee declared his opponent the winner, his coach patting his head.  while i walked away coz i didn't know what to say to him that would comfort him.  that would comfort me.

the hubby was most frustrated.  he commanded us to pick up our stuff and stormed out of the gymnasium to head home.  i knew how he felt:  all the training and hardships they went through gone to naught.  his first game as a red belt playing in novice2 went kaput.  how we waited for two months before he could play again only to end up with a severe loss that could've been a gold if only he had performed his regular game.  what happened really, we couldn't tell.  he just cried and cried on the way home.

..ooOoo..

normally, when we attend games, we are unable to go to sunday mass because it takes the whole day.  so we had the chance to go today.  normally too, we would be seated on the first few rows at the left side of the churh.  but since it was palm sunday, the church was already full when we arrived so we settled at the sidelines where we couldn't view the altar but it was presko and we had makeshift seats out of excess kneelers. 

halfway through the mass, i noticed this slightly obese boy, about 12 to 13 y/o with glazed eyes, looking harshly at my kids and other kids around.  his mom and dad were on both his sides, holding his hands each.  after a while, i heard him humming loudly -- singing actually, an unidentifiable rhythm.  his dad hugged the boy to him.  after a while, he was struggling to be let go as if he wanted to go somewhere but his dad kept him beside him.  his mom looked at him lovingly and wiped the sweat on his neck.  all of us around him knew he was special and were tolerant of his behavior. 

then i felt God talking to me.  here is a little family, much like mine, with much more to be disappointed about than me.  and here they are, in church, praising and thanking God for their special son.  they are not ashamed of him.  they are happy coz their son is alive and well.  i felt so guilty that tears welled up in my eyes.  i looked at the hubby and i knew he knew too what was going on in my head and in my heart.  i knew i had so much more to be thankful for because i had a smart, talented, healthy son whom i should be so proud of.  how could i be so ungrateful! 

walking home from church, i watched my son -- the little big man -- and whispered my thanks to God and my apology for being disappointed in my son.  talking to hubby later, he too had the same realization.  we know we wouldn't have our son any other way.  he's  our prize, our gold and nothing can take that away from us.

thanks, mike borja, for the photos.

stats

disclaimer:  i do not intend to brag in this blog post (although it may seem like it).  this post is for my own personal future reference.  just so i know and i will have something to look back on when i eventually lose count. 

this is what i call the little big man's taekwondo record, from april 2009 to november 2010 -- 19 months into the sport:

may 23, 2009 

lourdes school, valenzuela 

under sir achilles ponce

novice, group 0

BRONZE

june 28, 2009

m.h. del pilar high school, malolos, bulacan

under sir achilles ponce

novice, group 0

SILVER

july 18, 2009

waltermart, muñoz, q.c.

novice, group 0

under sir achilles ponce

september 20, 2009

region 3 cpj taekwondo championship

tarlac state university, tarlac

under sir achilles ponce

novice, group 0

BRONZE

october 11, 2009

seminary, guiguinto, bulacan

under sir achilles ponce

novice, group 0

october 18, 2009 promotion to high yellow

meycauayan, bulacan

promoted by sir moben angeles

october 25, 2009

sta. cecilia college, valenzuela

under sir achilles ponce

novice, group 0

 

november 14, 2009 

region 3 taekwondo championship

robinsons mall, cabanatuan city

under sir moben angeles

novice, group 0

GOLD

november 29, 2009

bagong bulakeño games

bulacan capitol gymnasium, malolos

under sir achilles ponce

novice, group 1

GOLD

december 13, 2009

camanava smart taekwondo championship

sta. cecilia college, valenzuela

under sir achilles ponce 

novice, group 1

SILVER

march 7, 2010

2nd mayor tito oreta taekwondo championship

oreta sports center, malabon city

under sir achilles ponce

novice, group 1

GOLD

promotion to low blue

march 21, 2010

region 3 new face taekwondo championship
megacenter, cabanatuan city

under sir moben angeles

novice, group 1

GOLD

may 16, 2010

san diego parochial school, pulo, valenzuela

under sir achilles ponce

novice, group 1

BRONZE

may 23, 2010

milo summer 

bulacan capitol gymnasium

under sir moben angeles

novice, group 1

GOLD

june 5, 2010

friendship games

greenfield subd, guiguinto

under sir moben angeles

novice, group 1 

GOLD

june 13, 2010

promotion to high blue

batallion fitness gym, meycauayan

june 26, 2010

carlos palanca jr. taekwondo championship

sm pampanga

under sir moben angeles

novice, group 1

GOLD

july 31, 2010

smart national taekwondo championship

rizal memorial coliseum, manila

september 18, 2010

hundred islands taekwondo championship

alaminos, pangasinan

under sir moben angeles

advance, group 1 (tried out the red belt)

BRONZE

october 3, 2010
region 3 cpj taekwondo championship
tarlac state university, tarlac city
under sir moben angeles
novice, group 1

november 14, 2010

tagaytay taekwondo championship
tagaytay city

under sir moben angeles

novice, group 1

SILVER

TO DATE:  7 GOLDS, 3 SILVERS, 4 BRONZES -- not bad, i'd say. :)

the Nth medal

i am not bragging, although i usually am when it comes to the little big man's achievements.  but i honestly lost track already of how many medals he's won.  i also already forgot how many competitions he has participated in but i'm sure it's less than twenty, more than ten.

so last weekend it was a bronze.  it was in alaminos, pangasinan, home of the hundred islands of the philippines.  the guy he lost to was from baguio.  we have heard lots of stories about baguio players -- that they train literally everyday, that they run uphill so they have stronger body resistance, that they "down-grade" (i don't know how to call it and if that's the right term at all)  their belts, i.e. if a player is a red belt he competes as a blue belt (lower) so he usually wins.

anyway, on our part, coach decided to make the little big man play a higher belt.  he's only a high blue in novice level but coach told him to wear a red belt and threw him in the pit with an advance level opponent.  he won his first game via sudden death.  unfortunately, he lost in the semi-finals but managed to be 3rd with a bronze medal.

overall, our team was 4th place among 23 competing teams.  not bad for our team who only had 15 players unlike others who had 50.  and the experience was well worth it because we not only won a tournament, we also won friendships with families of team mates.

what makes a champion?

indeed, what does it take to make a taekwondo champion?  my kid's shirt, which hubby and i conceptualized ourselves, had it made to order by ourselves, says it all...

migo's 7th gold in tkd, 26 june 2010

...and God does the rest.

gold for lolo roging

Migo dedicates this gold to his Lolo Roging (my Dad's brother) whose cremation was on the day this championship was held.  Lolo Roging was always happy to know whenever my Dad tells him that Migo won a competition.  The last time Migo saw him alive, he just came from another competition wherein he got his 6th gold. 

Pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/album.php?aid=189146&id=554330776&ref=mf

sixth

6th gold yesterday

green estates friendship games

guiguinto, bulacan

not really a significant taekwondo competition

but nevertheless.

cannot find the right words to make a blog entry worth-reading so...

blogging this for the record.

proud momma, again.

the fifth

DISCLAIMER WARNING:  
IF YOU ARE ANNOYED BY PARENTS WHO TALK ABOUT NOTHING BUT HOW GREAT THEIR KIDS ARE, STOP READING HERE AND MOVE ON TO DO BETTER THINGS WITH YOUR TIME BECAUSE I AM GOING TO BRAG ALL I WANT.  THIS IS MY BLOG AFTER ALL AND NO ONE'S FORCING YOU TO READ IT.

 

hindi ko na ipagkakaila.  my gad, ang galing ng anak ko!

the 1st proof
he got his 5th gold yesterday in tkd. we were back at the bulacan sports gymnasium where he won his 2nd gold last november.  he was all fired up early in the morning and we knew he had set his mind on only one thing.

the 2nd proof

while waiting on the bleachers for his fight, daddy efren, one of the trainors was talking to some newbie parents (read:  parents of white belts who are first time attendees of a tkd competition).  he was sort of telling them on how to motivate their kids during fights.  how some kids may be afraid to fight but will have to face up to their fears and all that.  then he told them, abangan nyo yung anak nito (pointing to little me sitting beside him), yung si migo, tapos si clarence tsaka si miggy.  further, in a different conversation with another set of parents, he told them that too and added, sila ang pambato natin sa novice.  that said, i will now rest assured that i'm not praising my kid just because he's my kid. 

the 3rd proof

still on the bleachers, his coach was wandering around and when he saw me, he came over and asked, si idol?  (that's what he calls migo eversince he got him under his wing.)  i pointed to migo 3 seats away, playing with his psp.  he half-grinned saying, ok yang warm up mo ah, baka ma-injure daliri mo nyan.  he's always confident about migo's performance like that. 

the 4th proof

i have yet to figure out how to embed the youtube video here.  so i just put this link.  see for yourself by clicking here.

the fifth

for his past several tournaments, i got into the habit of cheering him, wrecklessly screaming my lungs out while he's on the court.  i would usually watch at the sidelines with his teammates and without a care about other people, our usual cheer goes GO MIGO!!  i asked him if it embarasses him and if he wanted me to stop doing that.  he said he actually likes it.  this morning as i was about to leave for work, i kissed him goodbye and told him bye-bye champion.  he kissed me back and replied, bye-bye my number one fan.


it's not the size of the dog in the fight; it's the size of the fight in the dog.

a lesson in defeat

victory is sweetest when you've known defeat. - malcolm forbes

migo brought home a bronze medal yesterday from another tkd tournament.  he should be happy.  out of 12 tournaments that he has participated in, he already won 3 bronzes, 2 silvers and 4 golds.  that's all in the past 13 months that he's been into the sport.  that's more than anyone who started the same time as he.  and at his young age of 7, that should be a feat.

but as soon as the referee raised his hand indicating the win of his opponent, migo's eyes welled up in tears as he headed out of the court, towards my outstretched arms.  he cried and cried for a good ten minutes, i think.  me and his dad and his coach and his tito benedict, together with his teammates comforted him, patted him on the back, gave him words of encouragement and did everything we could to console him.  you still got a bronze, anak!  don't cry!

it wasn't really a fair fight if you look at it.  but who said life, or this sport, is fair, right?  he won his first 2 fights for the day and we were already looking forward to the finals.  then we found out that he needed to win a semi-finals round with a group 2 opponent.  (migo is in group 1.  group 1's height is 120-128cm.  group 2's height is 128-136cm.)  i became a little anxious but knowing my migo, that he is never  fazed by any size opponent, i relaxed a bit and waited for his call.  it turned out the kid matched to him was about 5-6cm taller, 3 years older and although was a yellow belt, had been training years before migo even started.  but migo put up a good fight, with a 5-8 final score, with some points by  migo not counted.  i have the video!  i can prove they didn't count at least 3 points in round 1!  to me, it was a tied match but then again, that's me, i'm his mom.

in the end, it was a lesson learned, not only for migo but for me and hubby as well.  that we cannot always win.  that at some point in life, we will lose.  that losing doesn't make us any less, but makes us better people.  that we now know how those we defeated before felt.  that it's okay.  that life moves on.  and that there are more things to be thankful for.  that prayers sometimes go unanswered because God must have another thing planned out for us.  that a bronze is better than none. 

my migo became a matured athlete yesterday.  i'm still a mighty proud mom.

"Making your mark on the world is hard. If it were easy, everybody would do it. But it's not. It takes patience, it takes commitment, and it comes with plenty of failure along the way. The real test is not whether you avoid this failure, because you won't. It's whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere."

                                                                                               -Barack Obama

 

the 4th gold

 

i could get used to this.  migo winning the gold, tournament after tournament.  even the silver may not make me that happy after today.  he has turned into a (cute little) monster on the taekwondo court.  he's become unstoppable.  his speed and accuracy has upped to a different level compared to those in his level.  that's my opinion.  i'm his mom.

he was promoted to blue belt two weeks ago.  last friday, i bought his blue belt in time for the tournament yesterday.  binyagan mo ng gold yang belt mo ha, was his dad's words to him before his first fight.

i'm so proud of what he's achieved so far, at seven years old.  i know he could do so much more once he sets his mind to it.  next schoolyear, we're targeting ... soccer!  :)

my tkd kid

oh by the way, migo's promotion to blue belt was last sunday 07 march 2010.

he also won his fight and another gold medal.  he has 3 golds now, 2 silvers, and 2 bronzes.  he's 7 1/2 years old.  he started taekwondo at 6 1/2.  

do the math.

me.  proud momma.

Gold Again - Keeping 'Em Coming

Yes,  Migo got a gold again last Sunday at the Bagong Bulakenyo Games in Malolos, Bulacan.

Fight No.1

He was competing with a Blue belt.  I didn't notice this until after the game.   Had I known beforehand, I would've been afraid coz he's never won over a blue belt before.  But that fight made me nervous as hell still.  He was actually ahead in points but got deductions for holding on to his opponent.  So by the end of Round 2, they were tied.  My heart pounded so loud I swear the people beside me might have heard it.  So sudden death it is.  The very moment the 3 judges raised the red flag -- signifying Migo's win, I let out a loud cheer with my arms raised heavenward.  As soon as he was off the mat beside me, he told me, Yey, I beat a blue belt!!!

Migo in red armor

Fight No.2

 His opponent was supposed to be in Level 1 so was disqualified.  Good thing Coach Moben was there and noticed the height difference and had the opponent measured.  Although, hubby told me Migo could've easily beaten him despite his being about 4cm taller.  (True enough, later when we saw him play against another Level 1 player, he was a wimp.  Poor guy.)   This meant Migo was in the finals!

Side story:  When Coach Moben told Coach Achilles that Migo's opponent was disqualified and that Migo was going in the finals, he said, Yung makakalaban nya sa finals, taga Hagonoy.  Wala yun, kayang-kaya na ni Migo yun.  Love his vote of confidence!

Migo in black head gear

Fight No.3 - Finals

Score was 7-0 Round 1.  Then 3-0 Round 2.  Final score 10-0. 
Ten-zero.  I have nothing more to say.

  Migo with his Gold and Coach Moben and Achilles