I am not an athlete though for a very brief time in high school I played field hockey. They issued shin guards and mouth pieces. They taught us to block shots with your stick. They taught us to take a hit without getting hurt.

Where is the protective equipment and such valuable lessons for parents? Was I at work or in Target during those seminars? Is there a make-up class?

Today Chris and I attended a special meeting about Cat at her school. Apparently our girl lacks focus. She would rather discuss her dogs, her Halloween costumes or our trip to the mall than to focus on spelling words or math facts.

Her teacher, who went out of her way to refer to Cat as “endearing” and “eager to please” summed it up by saying, “When she is with me, there is no stopping her, she is REALLY with me. But when she is not, she is really not.” It was a fair criticism. It was an accurate statement. It was an issue to which we had already been alerted.

It was also a knife in my heart.

Jill posted recently that no one prepares you for the parenting mistakes that you don’t see coming. I think it’s also true that no one prepares you for the anxiety and pain you feel on your child’s behalf. It is wrenching to have a child who is charming, bright and eager to please who falls short in her efforts. It physically hurts to watch her scrunch her face with concentration and determination only to be crushed to learn that 11-3 is in fact not 7.
And if there is a pain worse than hearing your child say, “Forget it, I am just dumb” then it is not one I am prepared to face.

To add insult to injury, she is learning to ride her bike with no training wheels but daily faces the taunts and inquisition of a younger neighbor, “Can’t you do that YET? When are you going to ride a bike with no training wheels?” He has been doing it for two weeks. I resist the urge to encourage him to do so in traffic. Barely.

These issues are small. She is healthy. She is bright. She will conquer bikes with no training wheels and second grade. Face these we will, though the weather be foul and face these we will, though the Hackencracks howl, to paraphrase the good Dr. Seuss. But I could surely use a jock strap for my heart while we do.