It takes years of study to achieve a black belt.
Mary Mountain has put in the work over the past eight years. What makes thePlainfield Township resident’s near-achievement unique is that she’s only 12 years old.
“At 4, she was taking swimming lessons and her dad and I thought, ‘Well, jeez. Maybe she’d like the martial arts,'” said her mother, Ellen Mountain. “So we took her to one class and she really liked it.”
The sixth-grader received her junior black belt in June 2011. She takes classes and private lessons at Action Karate inLower Nazareth Township.
“I take private lessons to help me more with a one-on-one for the self-defenses and katas for my black belt,” she said.
“Kata” is a Japanese word used to describe highly choreographed movements practiced either alone or in pairs. She needs to know 11 of them along with 81 self-defenses before she can earn the adult black belt.
Her parents appreciate the life lessons that go along with the exercise.
“One of the things we really thought was cool for the younger kids is they really go after bullying,” Ellen Mountain said.
“They teach you how to get yourself out of a situation rather than fight back.”
“Karate sometimes is misunderstood,” Mary added. “It’s not all about violence as some people would think. It’s about defending yourself in a situation. … You’re only supposed to do a few moves and if you can get out of there, you get out of there. It’s not about beating someone up.”
Mary is involved in several groups, including a demo performance team. She also participates in tournaments every six months.
Why has she stuck with it?
“I love how everybody is really nice and you don’t get put down if you can’t do something well. The instructors help you if you’re having trouble with one thing,” she said. “And I like the katas and the kicking because I’m really good at the kicking.”
She trains with various weapons, including a wooden sword and knee sticks.
“One of my favorite weapons is the kamas,” Mary said. “They have a long wooden handle with a blade shaped like an eagle beak at the top.”
The kama fits in one’s hand and resembles a scythe.
After she achieves the black belt, Mary could try for a second degree.
“I could find something else to do, but I’m probably going to stick with it,” she said.
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