About receiving the black karate belt, Austėja Landsbergienė announced on Tuesday afternoon on her Facebook page. Here, the well-known woman shared her journey towards it and published photos.
When I started, I thought I would be very proud of myself if I at least reached the blue belt.
I remember my coach then said: “Austėja, a black belt is a white belt that did not give up.”
And then everything fell into place for me: I. Cannot. Give up.
JUST that much.
EVEN that much.
I trained all these almost seven years four or three times a week.
I trained everywhere.
In Iceland. While colleagues were sleeping in another room and trying to be as quiet as possible.
In Germany. With a colleague sleeping in the room, I went out to the hotel corridor, and everyone going to the elevator was watching what was going on.
In the UAE. Outside, early in the morning in the desert, and my coach saw an antelope (?) come behind me, and with it – a baby.
In Italy. In a monastery on stone floors (one of the hardest experiences to do push-ups on fists on those floors!).
In Normandy, France. There was not enough space in the hotel, so I went outside, found a lawn, and there – so terribly inconveniently uphill – I exercised.
In Tenerife. At 4 a.m., when the birds were awake, and the sound was such that my coach and I could barely communicate.
In Mexico during vacation, when the family was still sleeping.
In Japan. South Korea. USA.
E-V-E-R-Y-W-H-E-R-E work and/or vacation took me.
In the yard. In the bathroom (aha!:))). In the hotel gym. In the hotel lobby. In the hotel corridor. In the hotel yard. In the room. In the living room. In the kitchen. On the terrace. By the pool. In the mountains. On the plains. In the desert. Everywhere I found enough (or almost enough) space for katas.
Everywhere I went, I took my outfit and exercised.
With my coach.
If it didn’t work out with my coach – with her coach Edit Abraham, who, if she could, always helped, always supported, always pointed out where I could still try harder. For me, just that SHE trains me was and is SOMETHING – I am endlessly grateful and joyful.
Magdalena also took over the training at times.
If it didn’t work out with either – due to time differences or schedules – I at least did katas alone.
Gabija and I called this phenomenon “kata breakfasts” because I always did them in the morning.
By the way, at first I didn’t even tell my family because I told myself I would say after the first exam. That’s how it was – I just came home with a kimono and already with an orange belt.
Why karate? Because since childhood I was fascinated by martial arts movies. Those people seemed so “cool” to me – maybe also because they always fought for the right things. But, well, back then I attended music school, swimming, tennis, and several other clubs, and martial arts didn’t find a place.
When the kids grew up, I remembered this dream and thought, well, I’ll just do it by doing!
I started looking for a coach. I found Brigita, wrote to her, and asked if she could train me individually at 6 a.m. To my great joy, she agreed!
Yes, 6 in the morning.
Yes, almost 7 years.
Yes, 3 or 4 times a week.
I think neither of us really understood what we were committing to and what that journey would be when we first wrote to each other!
When I advanced with belts, I started going in summers to Lithuanian Kyokushin Karate Federation camps. What a community! Not many can say that at 40+ they made new friends, but I can – through this community. The camps also got me used to other coaches, their pace, their voice – these were always experiences pushing me out of my comfort zone. Eventually, the camps got me used to training with others and seeing what I can do better, what I do well, and what – really well! Darius Gudauskas, Tomas Zienius, Eugenijus Šilaika, Artūras Bobelis – I am endlessly grateful to them for those four summers.
As always and everywhere, some people looked at me skeptically, raised an eyebrow – I think I had to prove and try harder because, well, I saw and felt like I was under a magnifying glass. I kept hearing stories/gossip about me – believe me, that’s not easy either because, well, I chose this myself! Sometimes I thought, “Do I really need this HERE TOO?!” I’m glad it was only a momentary feeling because I received and still receive much more support and warmth!
One of the most enjoyable things – giving lectures at camps (after all, coaches are educators). I always enjoy getting an invitation, always enjoy a full room – after all, it’s people’s leisure time, yet they choose to come to me. In a space where I am most pushed (well, I push myself!) out of my comfort zone, during my lectures I feel like a fish released into water. Such experiences teach humility very much: here we are like fish in water, and elsewhere, it seems the heart will burst, and you have to breathe deeply to calm the excitement.
I am grateful to everyone who approached and encouraged me, especially this year. I am especially grateful to the coaches (including those who were not my summer coaches but are simply experts who can advise!), who always found time to stop and explain – this is incredibly important for a person who wants to improve and feels that desire is supported.
I told myself that my goal is not the black belt, but that I am a karate enthusiast… a karateka! Why? I remember once Gabrielius shared that if you want to run a marathon, often people who have run it quit running. Because, well, they achieved the goal. But if you tell yourself, “I am a runner,” neither the marathon nor injuries stop you because you just… run.
I want karate to simply continue to be in my life. That’s why I said I would celebrate the journey during the exam, not the exam or even the black belt. During the exam, I was in complete flow – and when the last kata was Tensho kata – I just enjoyed every movement. After the exam, I cried because this wonderful wonderful wonderful journey just ran before my eyes.
But I would be lying if I said the belt is not important. It is extremely important. Because I am that white belt that did not give up.
P.S. and – believe me! – my No.1 supporters were Gabrielius and the kids. After the exam, everyone was waiting for the news, and over these years they never once wrinkled their noses that my summers were preparation + exam and only a few weeks of vacation. This is my best team 4ever&ever.
Photos – throughout this week accompanied the camp by Algimantas Barzdžius,” wrote A. Landsbergienė.
This post by Austėja received thousands of reactions.
Understand instantly
Austėja Landsbergienė – about winning the brown karate belt: “My husband is an example to me”
Austėja Landsbergienė – about a painful teacher’s remark and experienced break: “I took it very personally”
Comments poured in with congratulations:
“It’s breathtaking to read! I’m taking this note for myself: ‘a black belt is a white belt that did not give up.’”
“This is just… impressive! Wow! Respect and biggest congratulations!!”
“Cool! But I never doubted you would go until you turn black!”
“I think it’s a very important emphasis on the effort it took you to achieve this.”
“Extremely cool! Congratulations, I don’t even have words to describe how strongly I congratulate you.”
“You can rightfully be proud of yourself, Austėja. No one else did those katas in the hotel corridor… I thought this is a much more difficult path than with a club team synchronously, communally, and with a loud ‘kiai.’ And if you ever hear someone talking behind your back – smile, because you are ahead of them.”
