A sense of accomplishment

It's interesting how our joys change as we have children. My own accomplishments, while still great, sometimes pale to those of my children.

Take today for example. In preparation for my yellow belt testing I earned a new stripe. All day I rode the high of that event.

Then tonight I took Janna to her Taekwondo class where I was regulated to the background to watch as she learned. After the class practiced the high kicks Mr. Dallas told the class he saw three students who impressed him. He then invited these students to the front of the class to demonstrate their skills. Janna was one of these students. My heart swelled to see her. The look on her face as she stood in front of her peers was priceless. She was overjoyed and her face shined!!! It was just as good or better than any moments I have had in these classes. To see her joy in this task, the pride in her achievement and skill level that she has reached affected me greatly. I was so pleased for her. It seemed even sweeter for me that she had her own “moment.”

It’s not that my stripe means any less to me. These classes give me something I need and I take great pleasure in them. It was simply more enjoyable for me to watch her shine then to shine myself. What a fun day for each of us.