mountain climbers

I haven't forgotten about this space, it's just that we, as a family, have been on a type of a break.  The once footrace that was gymnastics meet season seems to have turned into a marathon. The push towards State, then Regionals, and then Westerns.  We I  needed a break from the words surrounding it all.

BC took Beach and her friend India to Kauai for 8 days.  

I stayed home and reorganized everything- including my thoughts.

In the departing dust of change, as we have moved into summer training hours, as the requests from colleges wanting more information on Beach silently slip into my inbox I have wondered what to say.

What is important? 

From here I see the whole gymnastics thing as a mountain, not unlike Everest.  As the girls climb higher the group and the air thins. Girls Beach has competed with for years retiring because of injury, because of time, because of fear, because of the lure of the outside world. 

It is like I see them vanishing one by one from the backseat of my car. 

It makes you wonder what is out there?

I look back in time to Level 3, to Level 4.  I remember watching the big girls in the gym and now mine is one of them. One of the biggest, one of the oldest, one of the "best".

But right now her back is not good.  She took almost 2 full weeks off of training.  Returning to the gym (no pounding) on a Friday.  Followed that with a morning bars practice on Saturday.  By Sunday afternoon her back was hurting again.

Be patient we keep telling her.  Take as much time as you need. 

This is the hard part- watching her struggle.  And believe it or not, this is the spot you are racing your daughters towards.  The top is narrow and steep.  Some days it takes all they have just to hold on to where they are.

I never wanted this life for her but right now I would very much like to see her recover and successfully continue up her mountain. Plant her flag on the summit before moving on.