A little late is better than never! Hi, I'm Forest

While this is not my first post I think that it's important that I introduce myself to this amazing community!

My name is Forest, I was born in Illinois in the late 70's but I only lived there for a month before my family moved to a tiny little town in north Idaho with my older brother.

Life was good there. It was one of those towns where everybody knows your name. My mom was a checker at the only grocery store in town which meant that she knew absolutely everyone in town. And that made it really hard for my brother and I to be mischievous without getting in trouble! But we did out best ;-)

In 1988 my parents made the decision that they wanted a better life for their children than living off the land in north Idaho so they packed us up and moved us to the Seattle area.

As anybody who's moved as a child will tell you, it was extremely hard for me to leave my friends behind. But my parents did a great job of making the trip as enjoyable as possible... by taking the very, very long route to Seattle.

A direct drive from Idaho to Seattle should take no more than 8 hours, but we decided to stop in Utah, Arizona, California, and Disney Land, which took us most of the summer. But I'll remember that trip for the rest of my life.

After finally settling down just outside of Seattle, my parents, in an effort to help me get adjusted to my new life, ask me if I wanted to continue my martial arts training, which I started a couple years prior to our move. I said yes, and that was probably the most impactful decision I've ever made.

We found a studio that was really close to our new home, and as luck would have it, this ended up being my second home. Meeting Master Hwang for the first time scared the shit out of me. He looked like the bad guy in every Asian martial arts movie I ever saw, and he had the most commanding voice I've ever heard. The studio was filled with pictures of him doing incredible martial arts kicks and international medals and awards that he had won. But there was just something about him that said "this guy is going to be my teacher."

And besides my father, Master Hwang has been the most influential person in my life. He taught me about respect, self discipline, hard work, speaking the truth, being a good role model, setting goals, humility, and courage. I spent many, many years studying under Master Hwang. I competed and won multiple competitions, and learned how to teach others.

And to this day, I'm still teaching other. Having started my own martial arts studio I've worked with thousands of children and have helped over 50 kids earn their Black Belt.

I've also recently become certified as an NRA pistol trainer so that I can help those who are concerned about their family's safety learn to properly handle and shoot a firearm.

Life is a never-ending opportunity for growth and learning, and I'm looking forward to sharing my knowledge with, and learning from, all of you.