My latest "last"

I'm having a hard time believing that in ONE WEEK it will be Thanksgiving!!  We've had a busy fall, but it still doesn't seem like it should be this late!  Is time flying at everyone's house or is it just mine?


The changes in the season also bring changes in activities at my house.  I hope to get started on Christmas shopping and decorating in the next two weeks, and then before I can turn around a time or two it will be February!!  In March (Lord willing) I will return to Israel to tour with some friends and I CANNOT WAIT for that fabulous trip!  When I return I'll be thrust into spring, which means SAPC baseball with Scott and helping with senior activities with Sarah's class.  My years of being a team mom, homeroom mom and pta volunteer are coming to a close and it's bittersweet.  


I loved helping with all those things.  I loved being part of the educational and recreational communities.  I loved getting to know so many of the kids and becoming friends with their parents.  A tennis buddy once told me that you never realize how your kids connect you to the community until they're gone.  I've kept that in the back of my head for a long time and have tried to savor these last few years.  And I will savor these next few months as this phase of my career comes to an end.

My latest "last" is Sarah's cheerleading.  She's cheered for almost as long as Scott played baseball, so it's been a big part of the fall months at our house.  This past weekend was the Virginia High School League State Championship for her competition squad.  She and her friends are some strong and focused ladies, and they are some of the hardest working and dedicated gals I've ever met.  August 1st begins their season which includes practicing 2-3 hours every day after school and then a couple of hours every Saturday.  They spend the off-season taking tumbling lessons or traveling with a recreational competition team, so they are serious about what they do and they work hard to have successful varsity seasons.

This year was no exception.  They won their district competition for the 6th time and then won their regional competition for the 3rd time.  Not bad for a school that is only 8 years old, huh?  And they had another commendable performance at the state competition and finished 7th overall.  Their routine was solid and flawless, their best performance to date, so they finished their season with heads held high and in great spirits.  But for six of the girls and two of the coaches it was the end of a fun chapter in their lives and one that many of us will miss.


I will miss going to football games and watching Sarah and her friends cheer for their friends on the field.  I'll miss the noisy chants and brassy tunes from the marching band beside us.  I'll miss seeing my kids' friends cheering in the stands, all of them donning some form of blue, gold and white TITAN wear.  Or paint :)  I'll miss sitting in the stands and chatting with the other parents and planning for the next cheer competition.  I'll miss the emails and the handouts and coordinating our calendars.  I'll still attend some of the home games but it will be different.  I'll be on the outside looking in, and I will miss being "in."


But most of all I will miss the GIRLS.  Many of them have been Sarah's friends since elementary school and it's been fun to watch them grow up into such beautiful and talented young ladies.  Their work ethic is remarkable and will serve them well as they enter college and begin their careers.  But they will go different directions and explore other interests, and they won't be a part of each other's lives like they have been.  Sure, they will stay in touch with each other, especially with all the social networking that's available, but it will be different.  Their worlds will expand as they leave home, and they'll have so many opportunities to learn and mature and grow.  They'll make new friends and become part of new communities.  They'll make good choices and stupid ones... they'll date nice guys and jerky ones... they'll have fulfilling jobs and frustrating ones...  they'll wrestle with their faith and their beliefs, and they'll need friends and mentors who are grounded and can help them navigate those waters.



So I hope they will foster a good relationship with their own parents and will stay in touch with some of their friends' parents.  Several of those parents have encouraged Sarah when she turned a deaf ear to Steve and me, and I know they would give her good advice again.  We love it when the kids' friends stay in touch with us, and it's an honor to share in the excitement of their new experiences.  Even though we'll always be "Scott and Sarah's parents," we look forward to the day when we become their friends.  And that can only happen with the passing of time, so I guess time passing isn't ALL bad ;)