About 10 years ago, I had the pleasure of meeting a sushi restaurant owner's daughter during my monthly sushi meetup with Jimmy, my old business partner.

She was about 16 at the time.  Friendly, smart, discipline, organized as she helped out waiting tables.

I found out she was beyond a straight A student, and quite accomplished for her young age.

Having 2 young daughters of my own (around 6 and 4 at the time), I was curious if there was some secret I needed to be privy to, in order to raise daughters with similar qualities.

Steve said, "Tae Kwon Do".

His daughter was a 6th degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

Steve assured me this was a big part of his daughters success at such a young age.

The discipline.  The life lessons.  The respect.

It was than that I hoped my girls would eventually find their way to the martial arts.

The first attempt failed when I enrolled Kalea into Tae Kwon Do classes when she was about 5 or 6.  ATA was the name.

Oh did she cry during the first group class.

And that was it.  One class.

Too young and/or not ready.

I kinda forgot about things until my younger daughter Kara asked to try Tae Kwon Do when she was 7.  

The closest spot was Tae Kwon Do Plus about half a mile from our house.

There's a video of Squeak in her white belt and headband, at home after the first class, responding to my prompts with palm strikes and kicks.

Her tiny little leggies sticking out for awkward little kicks, along with open hand "palm strikes" (which she now insists were never a thing, and what the hell was I doing... :) )

She stayed with it.

Then Bink joined up for her second attempt 6 months later.

They were in it.  They went every week.  And in 2022 or so, they both achieved the rank of Black Belt.

While that is truly the "beginning" of the journey in martial arts, Bink went off to high school cross country and track, and had to quit Tae Kwon Do.

But Squeak stayed on.  She forged new friendships, and has found her way into a tight "sisterhood" of TKD students and teachers.

In fact, she's now teaching kids after having advanced in the TKD leadership program, and is next in line to become a paid instructor.

She's entered several tournaments and come away with several gold medals, lots of silver medals, and a few bronze medals.

I couldn't be more proud of her resiliency and discipline she has embraced.

It's helped her far beyond the studio.  The lessons spill out into all of life, just as Steve said they would.

This is something I hope she continues for the rest of her life, as it's become a safe space for her.  A place where she can shut out the rest of the world for a time.

In 4 years she was never mentioned. Essentially "cut out" of the team, marginalized by the fastest (and therefore most popular).

Excluded, ignored, left out.

Sticking with her best friend, and a few others not a part of the "in" runner's crowd, she just kept on running.

After months of hearting about heavy legs, fatigue, and lethargy, her coach asked us to test her iron.

It was low.

Way low.  Ferratin level was a 4.  I hear that's pretty low.

So, we put her on iron supplements, and after several weeks, she began to PR.  In each race.

No longer were her legs heavy.  No longer was she "plateaued".

However, she was still ignored.

Award team meals, bus rides, races.  

I don't know that I'll ever fully grasp why, in a team environment in high school, cliques happen.

And in the end, The Bink persevered with her small group of friends on the team, and got the Most Improved Runner award after posting a 5:58 mile in her last run of the year.

A goal was reached.  More importantly, a lesson was learned.  You just keep going, through it all, and usually, good things happen.  Life rewards persistence.

So proud of Bink.

I still remember her first article as a Sophomore at FTHS.  It was an article about the Barbie movie.

https://foothilldragonpress.org/280296/a-latest/toxic-feminism-vs-body-positivity-reviewing-greta-gerwigs-barbie/

And her full body of work...

https://foothilldragonpress.org/staff_name/kalea-eggertsen/

"Dad, I just submitted my article to the backend!", she exclaimed as she climbed our stairs.  Big smile on her face.

It was new and fresh.  And she was writing for an audience of many now, instead of just 1, 2, or none. 

1 article, and 1 "Best of SNO" award.

Binky on fire!

Over time, she realized journalism wasn't for her.  She became an editor, overseeing her writers.

She travelled to Seattle and the next year, Minneapolis, to attend the awards ceremonies.

This year, 2026, the Foothill Dragon Press won a national award once again after missing it last year.

I admit I haven't read even half of her articles.

However, I'm making a point to go through them one at a time, each week, until I've see it all.

Funny how we don't always take the time to read the things that really matter.

Sometimes, I look at a page of text, and I push it away in favor of other miniscule tasks that "matter", but not that much.  And they certainly aren't urgent.

We've all got things to improve, and this is mine.

Lean into reading.

Step into the important things.

The mundane can wait.  

The mundane can be left undone, and you won't miss it.

As I sat reading comfortably outside in a wooden chair on the back patio, on a beautiful day, I hear a clunk and I feel a "whoosh" of air as a large, brown, furry body jumped up into the chair next to me, bone in mouth.

The chair, much too small for his large puppiness creaked under the strain of his nearly 100 pounds of body mass.

This loose lipped, loose skinned animal who has grown into a very large Chocolate Labrador apparently still believes he is a tiny little puppy.

From inserting himself between our legs as we walk around the house, for maximum human contact...

... to jumping on our laps, stepping on us in the process, while we watch TV late at night, eventually plopping his full mass directly on top of us...

... this dog has no clue as to his size and strength.

Oh Walter.

Here we go again! <3

After a peaceful 10 minute meditation where I explored the fabric of consciousness, I sat down at the table with focused intensity to continue the inner exploration.

The purpose is... well, to find my purpose.

I opened the journal the the page that was last completed, in order to remind myself wherein this journey I left off.

This serious, fascinating journey into self discovery.

I mean, this will define my future directions in life.

Cultivating more happiness, more meaning, more connection with the world around me.

Wait... it looks like the writing at the bottom of the page is somehow "different".

Some alien life form with a script far different than my own.

Or... maybe it's a message from the beyond, or the almighty itself!  The actual almighty!

It's a sign!  Definitely a sign...

I began deciphering the text...

I believe that I am a... "butthole".

Because I am... "full of shit".

Huh?

The next line...

I believe that I am... "fat".

Because...

"I eat too much candy".

Ah the mysteries of the Universe never cease.  Amazing!

It was good to see Bink at the finale of DTech, the Senior Banquet.  

While she feels this program wasn't all it was cracked up to be, and she wasn't thrilled with how it was run - I believe she simply found a path through life that she doesn't necessarily want to take.

I think the program is what you make it.  From silk screen printing, to 3D printing, to CAD design, woodworking, and a CNC machine, DTech is a place for the self-motivated.  Just like in an actual self run business.

You have to be motivated, and have an affinity for entrepreneurship to get much as much as possible out of the program.  

It's not about a grade, everybody is going to get a good grade.

It's about getting the big picture in mind about how the program works, what types of things are available to you, and finding your niche.

Bink didn't really like the self-guided "student run" nature of it.  I think she's a person who likes a plan.

Still, I think it was valuable in some ways, but in the end it just wasn't for her, and that's ok.