As football season begins, I am spending a lot of time standing on the sidelines. Watching Bryce run around as the trainer, allows me to not only be proud of the hard worker that he is, but the respectful nature that he goes about doing his job. As he grows older, I am more and more on the “sidelines” in the figurative sense. Last night after the game, he was visibly annoyed and his emotions were full throttle. While the hubs tends to let him alone to process whatever the situation is, I tend to be the inquisitive one. Not to be invasive, but as a mother I want to know the issue that is bothering him, but only he wants to share. While he wasn’t willing to talk at first, I found that as I asked appropriate questions without lacing it with my opinion, he was willing open up.
The bottom line is, I realized that he is paying attention to what we say and do. He is fully aware that when others are pushing his buttons, it is more about them than him. It was fascinating to watch him work through his emotions and come out the other side being willing to move forward. All I had to do was share my experience and he was able to make his own decision about the situation.
While being on the sidelines is hard, I am enjoying being the spectator of this unique young man who continually teaches me how to be a better parent. Learning that he doesn’t need me to fight his battles is more freeing than sad. It just affirms that as he ventures further on his journey, he is fully equipped to handle the rough stuff. As a Mom, that is such a tremendous gift to uncover.
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