It is my second favorite holiday of the year! Christmas is my favorite, but this day is right behind it. It's a non-traditional year for us, so we're working today and tomorrow. I'm sad that we won't get to go scope out a lake to watch fireworks, but we're hoping to catch fireworks in town tonight.
Meanwhile, though, I wanted to share with you something that really stuck out to me this week. It was both a conviction and encouragement to me, so maybe it will be the same for you!
Ryan and I celebrated our 103rd monthiversary on Friday, and I'll have to tell you more about that this week. We were able to get away for a couple of hours for dinner and dessert, and it was while we were having dessert that I found my moment of encouragement and conviction.
We went for ice cream and found a little bench to sit on while we ate. Families were coming and going, and a couple of moms stopped to talk not far from where we stood. Both of them had been at ball games for their boys, and while they swapped stories of baseball-mom-life, the husband of one stood nearby.
He had such a kind face. (I can't ever say that without thinking about the episode of I Love Lucy where she participates in the comedy bit about the person with the kind face. Have you seen that one?)
Anyway. He had a kind face, waiting patiently for his wife to finish talking so the family could move toward ice cream. While he waited, he caught sight of another family around the corner from us. He smiled brightly and asked the kids in that family how their night went. (The must have had on baseball uniforms too.) I couldn't hear their answer, but the look on his face told me they hadn't won.
What he said next caught my attention. Rather than saying he was sorry, he just kept smiling and said, "But did you have fun?"
And then he went on to ask what position they played. He waved goodbye and moved along, closer to the window.
He stopped to talk to more families - people he clearly didn't know, but if they wanted to say something, he made time for them.
It was convicting to me. It's no secret that when ice cream is in view, I find it hard to widen my tunnel vision. But I appreciated that this guy not only made time for everyone, but he made sure to find the joy and bigger picture in everything - even a baseball loss.
He reminded me (as he reminded some random child around the corner) that it isn't always about whether or not you win, but whether you had fun in the process and how you contributed to what you did.
Maybe you needed reminded too?
2 comments:
I tell parents at back to school night they should ask their child "did you have fun" and "did you do something kind" not "what did you learn" because the first two matter more!
I read a book about kids and sports and parents and the main takeaway was it should be about the fun, or what you learned, and not whether you won or lost. So I always try to ask, "Did you have fun?" or "How did it go?" so that my kids can share the bigger story with me and not just the score.
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