Parents in the Bleachers

   I went to a new  high school football game tonight and things were different.There were several police officers present.  They needed to be there. The kids in the bleachers were insane.
 I love the fact that the bleachers at our high school in  Fountain Lake, Arkansas are always packed with lots of student and adults..  Everybody shows up and half the folks are adults because they are parents and their kids go to Fountain Lake or they are alumni.
Tonight I talked to a police officer at the "other"game, and he explained they had to keep lots of law enforcement present because parents generally just dropped their kids off. And that means there are problems.  But at Fountain Lake there are generally as many adults in the bleachers as kids. We all watch each others kids, we holler at them, give them money, ask them to go get us a hot dog or popcorn from the concession stand. It's a community and I love that.

Tournaments, Crappy Losers, Good Handshakes

I love tournaments.  You can leave money, cameras, phones all over the place and nobody steals your stuff. The men know how to shake hands. When competitors win or loose they shake hands and say "good job sir".  Crappy losers are not rewarded, they are shunned.If there's a problem, high ranks talk it out, together.  And if you talk behind peoples backs, it usually gets back to them because everybody is connected. If you break a girls nose or accidental kick a guy below the belt, you turn your back and take a knee. You do not jump up and down and high five your daddy.And at the end of the day you walk around , shake hands and hug. You thank your host for inviting you. even though he weights 200 pounds and doesn't mind round kicking a baseball bat. 
I love tournaments.

The Uniform Is Ironed

Tomorrow we have a tournament.  I just finished ironing uniforms and my heart is starting to clip along at a pretty good pace. It always does, even when I'm not competing, just judging  Lexie is though and I'm hopeful her form will get it done.

Lex and I are both 2nd degrees but at 14 she is on the rise and I'm working hard to maintain.  I love going to tournaments with her because she's pretty, her forms are powerful and flashy so folks like to watch them but she's the pretty high-rank girl that stops to help yellow belts fix their uniform.  She tells first-time tournament moms that things will be ok then shows them where the bathroom is and how to fix a belt.  She's the teenager who approaches the masters and grand masters, is very respectful but at the same time playful and chatty. She loves Taekwondo, she grew up here, and she wants everyone else to have fun too

I stand back from my daughter at tournaments as she works the crowd and gets ready to compete because I just want to watch her in her element.  There are days her work before and after she competes is more  beautiful and rewarding than her form or sparring. She's that girl and she's mine.