For kids.. for girls.. for women...

Whoa. Just discovered a cool blog, by a mom about her kids' journey in jits, thanks to Steve at Steve's BJJ Blog. The blog is called BJJ Kids. She's posting about the benefits of girls learning jits, but I think it applies equally well to women, and this snip does an excellent job of explaining some of the changes in my own view of myself as I've gone through my own jits journey. So far!

"The gi equalizes gender. Girls walk out on the mat in the same clothing as the boys. All of the children are taught the same things: the art and practice of Jiu Jitsu is very unique and, in many ways, more challenging than other martial arts. Along with the knowledge of grappling, the children are expected to be disciplined, respectful, and kind – both to their instructors and to each other. I have never seen a child in class behave in a sexually inappropriate way toward anyone – they simply know it is not acceptable, so they would never do it. At school, my daughter has been a victim of aggressive and sexually deviant behavior; this is the unfortunate reality of the world. The knowledge she gains in Jiu Jitsu class, where she is safe and supervised, will help her in coping with real-life bullying scenarios which, by their nature, often occur when a smaller, weaker victim is alone and unsupervised by adults.

In her practice of Jiu Jitsu, she learns that being beautiful is only one aspect of who she is. Another aspect is that she is STRONG, physically and mentally. She learns that she is capable of defending herself rather than requiring a man to defend her. That she doesn’t have to say YES to every offer made to her, whether that offer is sex, drugs, alcohol, or anything else. My daughter will stand strong, when others succumb to peer pressure. She will know that being a girl is NOT being the “weaker sex,” but rather that being a girl means overcoming her own challenges and knowing she is strong enough to reach her goals."