What a Monday!

Work has been more exciting than it needs to be ever since we got several new students from Buford. It's been a different dynamic this year with all of the young ones they already gave us, and now there's more.

I've felt worn, but the end of wrestling is in sight, at least. No middle schoolers came to the high school practice today. We only have four practices left until Regionals on Friday. It will be "win or the end." There was a high coach to wrestler ratio, so I snuck out early. 

That let me pick up Shane's gear and Shane for his wrestling practice.

Practice was challenging. There was an odd number of kids and Shane found himself the odd man out.

Not that he was doing much of anything to try and get involved.

When Shane was involved, he was being a bad partner. He'd run the breakdown and pin....and then he'd bounce. Or he'd slap the mat and cheer without letting the other kid up quickly. When the other kids were wrestling, he'd jump on top of both of them or another kid who wasn't looking. I think he meant it in good fun, but I thought they were jerk moves. I was all the way across the mat and watching it happen, getting annoyed, and debating whether or not I should read him the riot act.

Then the other kids started to reciprocate. One in particular. When Shane was down, he'd give Shane a bounce after a takedown or what have you and it was slowly escalating. Shane seemed to think it was all for fun and was oblivious.

There's a natural lesson to learn here, but I hoped one of the six other coaches in the room would have said something before it got to that point. They never seemed to notice and my frustration at the situation kept building, but I let it continue to play out.

The culminating moment was when Shane decided to bounce on both kids while they were live wrestling. Then he rolled over on his back like a cat or something and laid there with his legs up in the air splayed (all bad things to do on the wrestling mat). The one kid did a half-ass kind of punch/slap from the elbow and got Shane right in the balls.

Shane rolled around for a little bit and then he was pissed. He growled at the other kid when he stood up, swiped an arm in the arm like a punch toward the kid, and stormed off the mat.

Shane was unhappy. I was unhappy. We talked. Hopefully, something was learned. Shane bounced back faster than I did from what I saw. I was acting normal (I hope!), but the brain was churning under the surface. What were the magic words that would have been the best lesson? Should I have stopped it from escalating in the beginning? What should I do next? Talk to W since he coaches for CWC?

Questions were still exploding in my thoughts when the car freaked out. I tried to turn it on and the ignition stuck, lights flashed, and then there was a clicking instead of an engine starting.

Repeated tries confirmed: There was a problem.

I cleaned off a bunch of corrosion and called Carrie to give us a jump.

Shane kept bouncing around the car and trying to get me to look at him which didn't help the mood.

When we got home, Shane said, "That was the WORST luck!"

To which I replied, "Not really."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Was anybody hurt?"

"No."

"Was it freezing, raining, or snowing outside?"

"No."

"Were we in a hurry to get anywhere? Was Mommy busy and couldn't get to us?"

"No..." Shane looked like he was at least thinking at this point.

I asked a few more questions.

"It's not fun, but it was probably one of the better times it could have happened. I'm not thrilled the car broke, but we have a lot to be thankful for."

My mood was still not what you would call 'elated,' but Shane being dramatic, doom-and-gloom allowed me to voice aloud my own attitude realignment attempts. That helped me to process them myself.

Even after a rough day, God is good. I have jobs I feel called to do, and I'm doing them. I have a family I love and that loves me back. Carrie will give Shane and I rides tomorrow and call AAA since she's working from home. I could walk to and from work if I had to. For a car to break down, the situation was pretty rosy and for that I'm thankful.