Author: Rick Mc

His first rodeo. 🙂

… I was standing in a cavernous gym outside of Baltimore, watching my kid compete in her first official gymnastics meet. This was a long time coming for the girl. She had to practice for years to make the team, and she had to practice for months after that just to get to this first meet. And now it was all over. …

I remember when I would lose as a kid (happened a lot), and my parents would try to make it better by consoling me, but somehow everything they said just pissed me off. Now it was my turn to be the awkward sports parent. …

So I shut up and took her to Wendy’s instead. Everyone fails in life. It’s an important part of the learning process. But that doesn’t mean it sucks any less when it happens to you, or to someone you love. …

But we drove home and, bit by bit, she calmed down and laughed and smiled and started to resemble herself again. She started doing cartwheels and handstands in the living room and driving me nuts, just like she did before the meet …

What It’s Like To Watch Your Kid Lose