WADOKA KARATE: Mental Health – Testimony of a Former “At Risk” Kid
Sensei Colin Ninvalle (pictured) became a national role model when his journey from “at risk” kid to award-winning author was given enormous coverage in major Canadian newspapers and television. His story captivated the general public many of whom attributed his extraordinary personal transformation to the discipline he acquired through his devotion to the martial arts.
However, he always felt that there was ‘something else’ that was equally—if not considerably more—important which made his noteworthy achievements possible. Interestingly, it was only when he started a family that he began to understand the real benefits of his training. At the time he was always left speechless when he encountered startlingly disparate perceptions of who he was. To the action-soaked movie-going generation in particular, martial artists had acquired a sort of “superhero” status. “Can you do a back flip?” It wasn’t just a question. He concluded that the awestruck youth expected him to reproduce on demand what he had come to believe in when they met. Whereas his eldest son, for example, never stopped asking: “Dad, don’t you ever get sad?”
