Thoughts will take you to amazing places

I know it has been a while since I last posted. I have been doing a lot of thinking about where we are going in our journey in life, and didn't really have anything "great" to write. Or so I thought.

First let's start with the Pageant. Wow! I learned not to judge a book by its cover. I have judged pageant girls my whole life. And not in a good light, I might add. I am here to tell everyone it is a lot more than just looking pretty on stage. Now that does play a role. The girl needs to be poised, graceful, and look very comfortable in front of a lot of people. And that isn't an easy task. But they also have some very great qualities I must say are not so visible and you don't get to see.

I thought my daughter's resume was exceptional. She volunteers, has a 4.0 GPA, is Secretary of her Sophomore class, is a cheerleader, and swims. But so are the other girls. My daughter also plays the piano, but the other girls are concert pianist, simi pro ballerinas, and play violin in symphonies. These girls are so talented and dedicated. Great lesson in "you can always improve". I really had not looked into what a Pageant is all about. I just saw a few things and made my judgment. A great lesson in 'not judging others'.

Next, we'll go on to my son's football career. He's 10 and plays 5th grade football. My son loves football. He knows more about the game than most adults. His dream is to play football in High School and hopefully in college. I played sports. I know you get great coaches and not so great coaches. I also know about the politics that are involved. The coaches son usually gets to play the "key" positions. That's why the coach is out there. That is why my husband and I have both coached. I get it and accept it. But I am having a hard time with our current situation. I try to keep a positive attitude. My son gets screamed at and humiliated by his coach, and I tell him he is just trying to make you a better player. It is building character. Right? Recently, I have started doubting that philosophy. It started a week ago in a game when the coach wanted my son to cover a certain "hole" and wasn't communicating it well enough and got frustrated. He grabbed my son and pushed him. Ricky fell down. I was beyond control. Right there in front of the whole team I let the coach have it. I know see things with new eyes. I don't see him as trying to help my son. He doesn't have my son's interest in heart at all. He is about himself and where all this going to take him. Perspective in situations lets you see the same situation totally differently. I know see that my son is a 10 year old boy. He needs to be gaining confidence. Don't be torn down all the time. That isn't building character. It is leaving him not wanting to play football.

Can he reach his goals playing for another team, in a different division? Yes, he can. Another football coach (High School) even told my husband that. Right now my son just needs to be learning good fundamentals and gaining confidence. Confidence is the difference between good and great.

Next, is my middle daughter. She quit swimming last spring to play softball. She swam on a recreational team for fun and keep in shape, but left her club team that swam every day. When she went back in the fall they didn't pick her back up. They told me that she shouldn't have left. At first my view was "how crazy". Taylor had learned this summer that swimming is her love and she wanted to only do swimming from now on. This was a crushing blow. I knew of another team that is a 20-30 minute drive (depending on traffic). I hesitated taking her there, but then decided it wasn't that bad. So we are now on that team and we drive everyday. Taylor is swimming better and faster. She has great confidence in what she is doing. So the "bad" experience, brought an even better experience our way. Perspective!

I have a lot of parents tell me I am crazy for driving so much. No I'm not. It's just your perspective. Just because you wouldn't do it, doesn't mean I shouldn't.