26/05/2025
to Juswa Mon
When your sports season ends, it does for me too.
Because even though you’re the one out there competing, we parents know there’s magic in youth sports for us too.
I’ve spent the last few months driving you to and from practice and cheering on the sidelines of so many games. I’ve washed and dried uniforms, kept your always-hungry body fed, and juggled our family’s full calendar of work, school, and activities.
Some days we existed on chicken nuggets and cheeseburgers or got home way past little siblings’ bedtimes. We stayed in hotels, live-streamed games for faraway friends and relatives, and came home to mountains of laundry and responsibilities to wash, rinse, and repeat again and again.
And you know what? Every single overwhelming, exhausting, wonderful minute was worth it.
I got to be friends with other moms in those stands—both from our own team and others. We shared parenting struggles and triumphs in long conversations and quick, knowing glances. We became loyal and true supporters of each others’ kids—kids we loved like our own by the end of the season. We had fun (yes, parents can still have fun!) and made memories that filled up my cup and made me feel like I was part of my own team.
And watching you do what you love out there? I will simply never get tired of it.
I saw your spirit soar when things went your way, and ached when your shoulders drooped and your heart broke when they didn’t. I noticed your growth—in stature, yes, but more importantly, in confidence and in character.
Win or lose, I couldn’t be prouder of the teammate and friend you’ve become.
It’s one of the greatest honors of my life to open this hand that’s still raising you and watch you learn to fly. Sports doesn’t do that all on its own, of course, but it teaches valuable lessons that shape you in ways you won’t fully understand until you’re grown.
Until you’re the one on the sidelines watching the season end.
And when you get there, maybe you’ll glance a little farther down the sidelines to see me sitting there and you’ll know—the end of a season isn’t really an end at all. It’s another beginning in this beautiful life . . . one I'm forever grateful to be living with you.
Shared with permission from Moore - Writer
