#930 find the passion

I have been really busy at work over the past couple of months. We had some unexpected turnover in my department, so Kelsie and I have had to cover the people that left in addition to doing our regular jobs that already fill up our entire day. Hence, there has been some extra hours worked over the past few weeks.

Today T had a really big day at school. He had a big track meet that he was participating in and his final show choir performance was tonight. He asked me if I could come to the track meet then give him a ride home so he could take a quick shower and change before he had to go back to the school for the show.

This afternoon I left work around 3:00 and supported my kid. I got to see him participate in the long jump competition and watch him run in the 200 meter race. I was glad to do it. Since he is my only child, I realize I have limited time left with him before he's all grown up and doing his own thing. I'm thankful that my boss and my co-workers allow me to take a little time off so I can get a little work/life balance.

Here's what I loved about watching T run: there was a look of intensity and competition on his face that was fantastic to see. I probably makes T's life easier than I should - we try to give him everything he needs and most of the stuff he wants. I don't think I have instilled a good work ethic in him, though. I don't know if he understands that to be the best at something, you have to practice and work at it. He hasn't participated in competitive sports. The sports he has played were recreational leagues, so the teams practiced maybe a couple of times a week and played a game once a week.

But when he was running, I saw a glimpse of the competitor. I saw him try hard, I saw him push himself to run faster. I've been thinking about it all afternoon, and I really liked seeing that.

I just hope that T finds something he is passionate about (other than video games) that he will be willing to work at and improve himself. It's awesome to be really good at something and to like what you're doing.

Hmmm...this was kind of ramble-y and didn't really turn out how I expected it to turn out, but I guess that's what I was thinking about, so there you go.