I am in no way writing this post to brag about Jackson's athletic ability, but the honest truth is that he has an incredible athletic gift from God. I am amazed at how quickly he picks up sports and other physical skills. Jesse and I were both pretty good athletes back in the day (Jesse still more so being that I've had lulls in my physical activity with three pregnancies to slow me down), but Jackson blows us both out of the water.
I am so proud of him. He was amazing at soccer this year and we just started basketball this month. He is pretty stinkin good at basketball too. He wants to do baseball this year, but neither Jesse nor I are excited about sitting outside in the Texas summer watching 5 year olds "play" baseball, so I told him he has to be 7 before he can play. Anyway, the point of this post is not to brag, but to just share how surprised I am with my feelings in regards to his "gift". Everyone knows/empathizes with kids who aren't so great athletically, but are out there trying. I get it. I feel for those kids and cheer them on when they do great: score a goal/basket. But in my experiences so far with Jackson, I find myself feeling a mixture of emotions. I am proud for him, but I worry that other parents are going to be like "oh great, Jackson's on our team...that means less scoring/playing for my kid, etc." I wasn't prepared for feeling bad when people stop cheering for him after the third goal/basket during a game.
It's hard because he's only five. He needs encouragement just like the other kids. So far, though, he hasn't really realized or doesn't care that the crowd stops cheering for his baskets/ goals. So far, it's been enough that Jesse and I cheer and clap for him after each goal/basket. We decided that we will not hold him back or "bridle" him in these situations. We are, however, working on passing and team work that will make him a better player anyway as he progresses into more competitive sports down the line and make his teammates feel good too. Plus, we know that there will be times when he is not the most dominant player on his team and he will have to learn what that's like. I just never thought that having a child excel so much at something could be emotionally hard. It's complicated, but I hope we can encourage him and foster his ability in the way God intended.
hey--I just wanted to say that Nate played twice this past season against a little guy who goes to church with you who is AMAZING at soccer. I mean, out of control, could not believe the skills on this kid from the very first game of pre-k soccer. The second time we played them I made a point to go talk to his mom after seeing him dribble the ball down to an open goal and wait for someone else on his team to catch up so he could pass the ball to them to score. It kinda broke my heart because, like you said, he couldn't help that he was so skilled. (He also had an exceptional attitude about it!) You need to tell me when his next basketball game is because the Polks will come and cheer for every last basket! Also, there will come a day when he gets cheered for every basket again--it may just be after elementary school. There may also be a large paycheck involved, which will probably help. :)
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