Dear Blabby:
I hope you can help me.
As the mother of twins, a boy and a girl, the past twelve years of my life have been devoted to my kids and the wonderful sports activities they have so much enjoyed.
My son plays football in the fall, basketball in the winter, and baseball in the spring. My daughter’s schedule is just as hectic as she also plays three sports: soccer, basketball, and softball. Since they first began t-ball, it has been a twelve-month-a-year whirlwind, going from one sport to another, watching them compete and socializing with other parents. It’s been so much fun, and the memories are great.
I’ll never forget Junior’s first home run. He was nine and hit a fly ball over the first baseman’s head. It rolled under the right fielder’s legs, who tripped trying to get the ball. When he picked it up, he threw it to the second baseman, who dropped it. Junior just kept running and ran all the way home. A fan told me it wasn’t really a home run, but I knew he didn’t know much about baseball.
There have also been some frustrations. Sissy was very good at basketball, and some people told me she played very aggressively. I always thanked them when they made those compliments. During one game, the referee kept blowing the whistle and pointing at her. Before the third quarter was even over, they said she couldn’t play anymore and made her sit on the bench for the rest of the game. That was tough to watch.
Most of our family vacations have been spent attending the kids’ athletic events. They played travel ball and went to many sports camps. We’ve spent lots of money, and one year, after using up all my vacation, I had to take a leave of absence from my job because Junior’s team made it all the way to the regional tournament. But it all has been worth it, and I’d do it all over again.
But now, in a few weeks, they’ll both be graduating from high school. Junior has enlisted in the Air Force, and Sissy will be going to college ten hours away from our home. I am so sad these days are over, and I don’t know how I am going to be able to handle it. Can you help me?
Lamented in Lyco
Dear Lamented:
Welcome to the club that all sports parents have joined sometime in their lives. In times like this, I’d like to use four of my mother’s favorite words: ‘This too shall pass.’
In these final days of your children’s high school athletic career, relish the past, enjoy the moment, and send them off into their future with pride in your heart, not tears in your eyes.
The inevitable departure may be hard on the kids, but it’s even harder for the parents. You’ve spent your entire parenthood preparing them for the future. Now, that future is just days away. You’ve not received training as to how to let them go after 18 years of nurturing and protection. But it’s all part of their transition to adulthood. They won’t forget everything you have taught them over the years.
When it’s time for that dreaded goodbye, emotions will be running high. The last thing they need is for you to make it more difficult. It’s normal to feel those emotions. Just feel them after you say goodbye.
Good luck – Blabby.
(Disclaimer. The story may be factitious, but its sentiments are real. Every year, parents all across the Webb Weekly circulation area come face-to-face with their own sports offspring, walking out the door and heading to adulthood. Having a ‘been there, done that’ life on the other side can become rewarding and fulfilling. Enter it with no regrets. Take on new challenges and enjoy the new free time you will have for yourself.)
