Stethoscopes and Armbars: The Ribeiro Family

Today was an incredible day at our Ribeiro academy!! There were over 40 people there for an unforgettable promotion day. We had a black belt get his first stripe, a brown belt get his first stripe, a blue belt earned his silver star and got promoted to purple, and a brown belt earned his black belt. This was our coach’s first black belt he’s given without Saulo or Xande, and it definitely went to a deserving brown belt. Overall, the atmosphere was unlike any other – mostly because we all knew the belts were being given out except for the two who received them. To have caught them by surprise required a lot of stealth planning on our coach’s part and it was totally worth it! To see so many members of our Ribeiro family there in support of these guys and all the hard work they’ve put into their training was a great moment.

After the promotions we had open mat and I have never seen so much fun being had on the mats. People were psyched to see each other again and everyone was incredibly friendly and a great workout plus a great time were had by all. We then all met over at a place to celebrate (and yes, we all took freezing cold showers at the academy first… 40ish people and 2 showers = interesting experience). I know I’ve talked before about how much our academy feels like a family, but let me tell you it really is. And not just our academy, we’re a Ribeiro family. I honestly cannot tell you the last time that I was laughing non-stop for over 3 hours. We all hung out and talked about anything and everything, and it didn’t matter who you were or what you did because everyone was there to have a great time. I know I may sound like I’m slightly exaggerating on the course of this day, but let me tell you – I promise I am not. I feel so completely rejuvenated and ready to delve back into the books after today. How can a day spent with your jiu jitsu family be anything less than awesome, and just imagine that you also get to celebrate some well-deserved promotions!

I know some people in my life, and probably some people who don’t even really know me, think I’m absolutely crazy for being so in love with jiu jitsu mostly because I’m a girl in this male-dominated sport. I know they’re wrong – especially after days like today. Yes, jiu jitsu is wonderful for reasons I’ve already talked about like the mental and physical challenge and the life lessons you learn – but one of the best parts is the family that you gain. Today I really learned what it means to be a part of the Ribeiro jiu jitsu family and to have people that will be your biggest supporters because I saw it first-hand. And I know that if other people knew exactly what that meant they would be less incredulous, because our Ribeiro family is definitely worth being a part of. So congratulations to everyone today! And to everyone else… keep up the hard work! Remember what’s on the walls of our academies – a black belt is a white belt who never gave up!