My heart is just walking around

Tomorrow morning begins the new year of school sport for us.

Our high school son competes in his first 3 mile cross country event (at least I think that is the distance, longer than middle school at least).

This morning I ran into another wrestling mum who said her son (a senior) has been looking

My son running up a steep hill in a race last year.

at the weights of the team and predicting who'll wrestle in which weight division (though that is really the coach's job). Several of the team this year have been wrestling since the start of middle school, so it's going to be a great year. I got goosebumps just thinking about it all.

I really still don't understand why I get so excited about watching my kids play competitive sport. I guess we put so much into parenting these kids that it is great to see them go out and do their best? Love is proud in a good way?

The opposite of the despair we feel when they make bad decisions and the angst we feel when they are disappointed or anger we feel then they are treated badly.

I guess as someone said, when you give birth (or adopt), you just have part of your heart out there walking around and there isn't much you can do about it. These emotions are part and parcel of the whole deal.

“Making the decision to have a child is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”  

Elizabeth Stone* 

Someone once said to me that the joy we feel at seeing our kid's accomplishments has a parallel in God. He must look down at us when we "do well" and be full of joy. That's a precious thought. I should write a meditation on that someday...

* I would add "be a parent" to this quote.