IWSG- Enjoy the Moment

I had really wanted to post more this summer, but here it is already August and I've spent the whole summer having too much fun with my husband and kids!  But I figured with Jess and Alyss both starting college this fall, I'll have plenty of time to catch up on blogging when the house is empty.  :(

Today's IWSG though was the perfect day to take a moment and reflect on things ahead.

The Insecure Writer's Support Group is a wonderful place where writer's get together and talk about their fears, insecurities, and successes.  It was the brain child of Alex J Cavanaugh in order for us to give encouragement to one another on this long and sometimes lonely journey of writing.  It has been truly inspiring to be a member.  Check us out and join here.  

Today, while I have many insecurities as a writer like anxiously waiting to hear back from a publisher and slogging through the edits/rewrites of my novel, I also have some super exciting news in my real world job.  

Some of you may know that I've been a figure skating coach for over 26 years.  In that time I've enjoyed teaching many children and adults the intricacies of my sport.  I love nothing more than the time I spend on the ice with each student, learning about their lives and what makes them tick then guiding them to do things they never thought they could and seeing their eyes light up when they succeed.  

While I try to teach my students to strive for excellence and precision, I've never been a big fan of skating competitions.  Yes, it is fun to win and I guess sometimes students need the competition to push them to greater heights, but personally I think when we put the focus on "winning" we lose sight of all we have learned along the way.  It's the day to day practice where the learning really happens, where even after falling twenty times you still have to get back up, analyze the mistakes and try something different.  Winning on a particular day isn't really what makes the champion, it's the passion and determination that is brought each day to practice.  

Why am I telling you this?

Because despite my feelings about competitions, next Saturday August 13, I'm taking my team of Theater on Ice skaters to compete in the National Showcase Championships for Theatrical Skating!  I'm so excited I can hardly stand it!  We'll be competing against 15 other teams from all around the country and a Canadian team.

My fabulous team of kids!

I'm already super proud of the kids on my team.  They have really come together and gelled as a team.  In fact, they have so much fun together that sometimes it looks like we're having more of a party on the ice than working hard.  Through it all, they've learned to support one another, forget differences, work together artistically, and deal with injuries.  

It's been a great year! 

I'd like to say (and really mean it) that I don't care at all what place we get, but when I search myself I know that of course I would prefer winning.  But whatever happens next Saturday, I'll be proud of these fabulous kids and the passion and determination they bring with them every practice.  

My biggest hope is that they all take the time to look around and enjoy the moment.  I know I'll be enjoying having the privilege to share this experience with them as much as I've enjoyed the whole year as their coach.  

I hope you are all having a wonderful summer!

Kathy