dani4
Proud Parent
I've always felt that my DD doesn't really try that hard in her gymnastics class. I mean, she'll put forth a big effort and then just goof off for a while and not really try to do what her coach tells her. She's only 6 years old, and I recognize that many 6 year olds have not found that focus yet. But she's in a class with 4 and 5 year olds who seem more focused than she. It's a pre-pre-team class and I've suggested maybe switching to rec but DD wants to be on the team track (though at this rate she may never get there.. which is fine I guess..)
Anyway the point to this thread is that I'm going to mentally back off my daughter and cut her some slack from now on, because I've had a little taste of my own medicine. I've recently started getting back into rowing, and now I'm rowing exclusively in singles while in the past I was always in bigger boats. And it's totally kicking me in the pants and I just do not have the mental & physical energy to focus as much as I want to & think I should. I can do everything right for about 3 strokes and then it starts to slowly unravel, and I realize that if I could just stay focused and keep trying I could definitely do better! Rowing singles, it turns out, takes a LOT of mental energy- more than 8's and 4's and even doubles. Mental energy at the same time as physical energy- kind of like gymnastics (though without the fear factor, or the insane flexibility- well there's a little fear in the beginning when you're first finding your way down a river in the dark in a tiny little boat with tiny lights on your bow and stern and there's big scary rocks on shore and giant barges carrying construction materials- but not the same as fear of falling on your head).
And then I realize.. hey wait a minute.. that's what I think about 6 year old DD too... and she doesn't have the experience to understand that working hard really will make her better in the long run, and her brain isn't even fully developed yet. It's hard stuff, this mental & physical toughness, for me and even more so for her.
And now I am even more impressed by the little kids who have this thing, this ability to focus and persevere.
(FWIW I have never voiced any of my thoughts to my daughter about being more focused or tough- I know that would be unproductive. It has to come from within. I just lament that she doesn't seem to have that thing within her. Well now I know how hard it is to just get.)
Anyway the point to this thread is that I'm going to mentally back off my daughter and cut her some slack from now on, because I've had a little taste of my own medicine. I've recently started getting back into rowing, and now I'm rowing exclusively in singles while in the past I was always in bigger boats. And it's totally kicking me in the pants and I just do not have the mental & physical energy to focus as much as I want to & think I should. I can do everything right for about 3 strokes and then it starts to slowly unravel, and I realize that if I could just stay focused and keep trying I could definitely do better! Rowing singles, it turns out, takes a LOT of mental energy- more than 8's and 4's and even doubles. Mental energy at the same time as physical energy- kind of like gymnastics (though without the fear factor, or the insane flexibility- well there's a little fear in the beginning when you're first finding your way down a river in the dark in a tiny little boat with tiny lights on your bow and stern and there's big scary rocks on shore and giant barges carrying construction materials- but not the same as fear of falling on your head).
And then I realize.. hey wait a minute.. that's what I think about 6 year old DD too... and she doesn't have the experience to understand that working hard really will make her better in the long run, and her brain isn't even fully developed yet. It's hard stuff, this mental & physical toughness, for me and even more so for her.
And now I am even more impressed by the little kids who have this thing, this ability to focus and persevere.
(FWIW I have never voiced any of my thoughts to my daughter about being more focused or tough- I know that would be unproductive. It has to come from within. I just lament that she doesn't seem to have that thing within her. Well now I know how hard it is to just get.)