My aunt Maurine posted this on her blog, it originated from FastRunningBlog.com. It got me thinking, but see my thoughts below. Read first!
Last week, we had a Mom come to us and "inform us" that her 13-year-old daughter would be gone for two weeks vacation in late June, maybe another week after that.
Her daughter was not much of an age group swimmer, but she has some endurance capacity and comes regularly to workout at 5:30 am and again at 5:30 pm daily. She works hard, demonstrates little talent, but lots of determination.
Her mother is not athletic and clearly does not value athletics. We expressed our dismay that she'd be missing for 2-3 weeks in the middle of the most important training of the summer. Her mother's response?
"Who cares, she'll never be an Olympic swimmer, so what does it matter really?"
This is a dagger in the heart to any swimming coach, and it is to me.
If we only cared about and worked hard with, those 52 people who will eventually, once every four years, go off to the Olympic Games, it would be a small, empty and meaningless sport.
My response was "That's really not it."
What is it?
It is the fact that young people need to learn to dedicate themselves to something that is difficult, something that requires perseverance, guts and the daily determination to get your butt out of bed and go out and push your body till it can't go anymore.
Why do they need to learn this?
Because their lives are too easy, too soft, too catered-for. Too many people carry them, make excuses for them, never allowing them to try to be "heroic." Is it "heroic" to get your butt out of bed and go swim at 5 am? It is if you haven't done it before. Is it heroic to "make" 10x200 fly on 4:00? It is if you haven't ever done it before. Is it heroic to finish your swim and turn around and cheer for the teammate who is even further behind than you are, and is struggling to make the set? Need I say it? It is if you've never done it before.
And that is what "It" is about. About doing what you haven't done before. And learning that sometimes you succeed. Sometimes you fail. If you fail, you go again until you learn to succeed.
It's not about being an Olympian. It's about being Olympian. Learning to be a hero.
And what it takes to learn that.
Or, you can Be Comfortable and teach your child that it's more important to be Comfortable.
So, if that's your choice, I only have one question?
What will happen to your child on the day when they are made "uncomfortable" by life?
I've been trying REALLY hard to be uncomfortable. That seems a little silly, but I hate getting up at the crack of dawn to go running in the morning. I really suck at eating healthy, but I sure am trying hard to beat that, okay, scratch that. I'm GOING to try harder to eat healthy (those chocolate chip cookies I SWEAR were calling me...along with that Coldstone this afternoon).
Although I know I've worked really hard to get back in shape I've felt really frustrated this week. Keith has been traveling up to Mass this week for work, leaving at the crack of dawn when I'm usually running, and in the process waking Lily up early. Flush a toilet between the hours of 5-7 in my house and you are guaranteed to have a toddler ready to play in 5 seconds flat. He has had to do it this week, and it just happened to fall on the week I planned to seriously start training for my half marathon.
On top of all this both Lily and I got sick with head colds and we haven't been able to really get out at all, which means I haven't been able to run and feel like I'm backtracking twice as fast as I progressed (why is it ALWAYS like that?).
I'll never win a race, I'll probably never qualify for the Boston Marathon (though it is on my life list), but I CAN finish a race. I CAN improve my time, and I CAN accomplish something great. It might not be great to anyone else, but I feel like it's great for me. I AM A CHERIE OLYMPIAN!
Does this mean I'm settling to be uncomfortable and mediocre?
