Chase-man: You are a super star.
I look back at one of the posts I wrote about you in 1st grade. You're now a 6th grader (I have no idea how that happened.) You're in Middle School at Corbett Prep, and you are KILLING IT. You play Trombone in the school band. You're playing Fall lacrosse. You're running JV Cross Country. And you are making straight A's.
At your conferences, your teachers are expressed how awesome you are, and how well you are doing. No one said you lacked focus, or were lazy, or were disruptive. They all said you were very engaged in class, and in a few cases they suggested that you were capable of "stretching" a little more.
The only bad thing they said? (Besides the story about locking yourself in a locker, which I will cover some other time..) You tended to get the answers faster than a lot of the students, and then shouted them out. I kinda love that. You get the answers, you're excited, and you have trouble containing that excitement - that desire to show the teachers how smart you are.
Your grandpa said a few weeks ago that you can run the world, and I think he's right. If you combine that brain with your big heart and your goofball sense of humor, there will be no stopping you.
Two weeks ago, I got to see you overcome something. All season in cross country, you've been slowing down. The races were harder, and your times were worse. You were so disappointed in yourself, and for letting your team down. Your dad and I spent the week before the meet pumping you up. Dad was talking to you from the athletic standpoint...I was talking to you from the I-know-how-you-tick standpoint. At the meet, you took it all in. You ran a smooth and steady pace. You didn't walk. And you came in at a new personal best, clearing 90 seconds off your fastest time.
One day you may have kids and you'll understand how HUGE it is to see your own child overcome and grow, right before your very own eyes. I was so proud and so excited for you, and so amazed to see that maturity come out.
You have always been my joy, and I can't wait to see what's in store for you in the upcoming years.
