Sunday, September 13, 2009

I’m Whispering Because, If I Say It Out Loud, I Might Scare It Away


At the risk of jinxing myself, thus creating a parallel universe in which I am posting a sob story rather than a glowing tribute to my eldest-born child, I am just going to put it out there; The Teenager has been spectacularly awesome lately.

And, by awesome, I mean, non-surly, lovable, good natured and pleasant to be around. I’ll give you a moment to let that sink in.

Aaand, we’re back.

Our first indication that The Teenager had turned a rather important behavioral corner came with the news that she would be playing in both the B1 and B2 volleyball games last Thursday because her best friend, Kaz, as well as six additional teammates, had made the grievous error of ditching Wednesday’s volleyball practice to sit under the gymnasium stairs to drink Red Bull and eat beef jerky (par-tay!). Because they skipped practice, they were ineligible to play in the game and, the coach, not wanting to forfeit the game, asked the remaining players to do double duty.

The fact that The Teenager was excited to play in both games was thrilling. The fact that she had the opportunity to ditch practice with her best friend and chose not to makes me weepy with parental pride. Weepy.

Volleyball has been a really good thing for The Teenager. Wait, that’s not 100% accurate; having a good coaching experience in volleyball has been a good thing for The Teenager. Last year’s coaching was less than stellar, to put it nicely. This year, the coaches are experienced in the Ways of the Adolescent and it shows.

I am so grateful for their guidance and for their support when The Teenager opted out of the ditching; they praised her good decision making without embarrassing her and they made her feel good about her decision.

Which she should be because, it was the right one and; she made it even though I know there was pressure from her friends not to.

I have new hope for The Teenager’s future. I believe she will continue to have a positive attitude, a respectful demeanor and a happy and relaxed experience in school but, to be on the safe side; I’m still whispering.

2 comments:

  1. I'm so happy she made the right choice and was "rewarded" for it!

    ReplyDelete