Little Wise Guy

Sam. I love this kid! He's always had a way with words. The things that come out of his mouth are full of snark, but laced with oh-so-much wisdom. He is now a teenager and I appreciate his point of view. He's still young enough to say it with a little brutal honesty and get way with it, and has always had the gift of a great sense of humor to soften the blow. So, it's really the best way to drive home a message.

Tonight was kind of a tough night at dinner. He had just returned from golf tryouts and didn't make "the cut".

Side story... SOAPBOX: when and why did they get rid of so many middle school sports in public schools???? It is neither fair, nor developmentally appropriate for 7th graders to be on the same playing field with physically and emotionally seasoned 9th-12th graders. And we wonder why these kids "blossom" too soon!

I digress. So Sam started playing golf about 4-5 months ago. While I wasn't a fan of the whole middle schoolers with high schoolers set up, we encouraged him just to try. Twenty tried out and only 18 could make it. We knew the odds were not in his favor since he is so new to the sport. And unfortunately, 2 of the 5 7th graders got cut from the team. I felt bad for him because he was a little bummed.

But what was funny was when I asked him to set the stage and tell me what happened. He said, "well you know, mom. He lined us all up and started saying all the stuff he gets paid to say, like...how he appreciated us all coming out and trying our best... Then he started saying, I'm sorry to let you 2 go. This doesn't mean you can't be a part of our team..."
Then Sam interrupted himself and said "I wanted to say...um, yeah it does! Because you just gave us the speech about how we didn't make the team! We're not stupid, just not that good at golf!!"
I'm sure it's not easy to let a couple of eager kids down, but don't try to hand them some janky lines to make them feel better. They get it. And thank the Dear Lord that He blessed my child with a sense to find comic relief in crappy situations.

Then a few minutes later, I was looking at my new SELF magazine that came in the mail. He said, "Mom! What are you reading?" Like it was a Playgirl Magazine!
I said, "it's a ladies magazine for fitness...so I can look like her {Kate Hudson in a bikini}." We both laughed out loud - I don't know if that is good or bad.

But he then went on to say, "Mom, that's the problem. Too many moms try too hard to be like what they see on TV and in magazines. (And he actually named 2 of my best friends.) It would make life so much easier for everyone if they would just be who they are supposed to be!"

Those are some wise words out of a pretty young heart and mouth. He never ceases to amaze me. Go love his sweet heart.