I wear a lot of hats

It is a known fact that I like to wear hats.  I've worn hundreds if not thousands of them over the past 41 years.  My cub scout hat, boy scout hats, baseball hats, school hats - even schools I didn't even attend like  The University of California Bears.  One of my favorites was from my early teen years.  It was a Coors Light hat my sister gave me.  It made me look like a Greek fisherman minus the tan.  I kept that hat from the time I was thirteen to twenty five.  At twenty five Tina cleaned out my closet and threw it away because she thought it was ugly.  But I digress.

Lately I have been wearing a black and white Nike golf hat. It can be seen on a blog entry  where Amanda was playing softball.  But I have been wearing it to the gym and to play golf and even to mow the yard so it has gotten a bit used.  So this weekend at the Texas State Special Olympics I bought another hat.  It's blue and made for summer and is very comfortable. Since I bought it at the Special Olympics it says Texas Special Olympics on it.  It only makes sense.

So on our way home Saturday we stopped at a Starbucks to bring my level of caffeine up to a higher octane.  Tina took Amanda to the bathroom while I ordered our drinks.  The young guy behind the counter and I had the following exchange:

Young guy: I see by your hat you must be a nice person

Me after taking off my hat and looking at it to see what he was talking about: Well, my daughter thinks so.  The rest of the world has opinions that span the spectrum of all personality traits.  It just depends on the circumstances at the time. (Seriously, that is what I said)

Young guy: Your daughter likes you, that's enough.

Me: Thanks

I tipped him two bucks for making me feel better.  Between that and the Venti Vanilla Latte' I was set.

By the way, Amanda had a great time at the Olympics.  She was the youngest competitor in her events but she tried as hard as she could and was awarded a bronze medal for the 50 meter dash.  She runs as hard as she can and never gives up and it makes me so proud every
time I see try.

We didn't attend the opening ceremonies because it was just too hot.  Amanda was a little disappointed because she wanted to see all the policemen that would be there.  At dinner we ran into five officers who posed for a picture with her, so she was thrilled.

A great couple of days

We're back form the Area Special Olympics.  To say it was a great time is to say Christmas and Thanksgiving are kind of fun.  This is better than both.

Amanda has been practicing her two events: the fifty meter dash and the tennis ball throw and the work paid off.

What I thought was so great was how serious she was about the competition.  She stretched her arms and legs and even practiced her throwing motion.  She placed for a silver medal with her personal best throw of 22 feet.
She loved receiving the medal, but more importantly, she loved that a policeman gave it to her.  She loves cops.

Later that evening she had her fifty meter dash.  She did an outstanding job.  She pumped her arms and kept in her lane and ran all the way to the end.

After the race she was walked by a volunteer over to the awards tent.  The girl, I believe to be a high school student, spent about a minute and a half with Amanda and then made a point to tells us, "She is such a sweet heart.  You are so blessed."  That made my trip.

The next day was the actual opening ceremony.  Amanda found a friend on the team who held her hand and walked around the track with her.  We sat in the stands and watched with pride.

The national anthem was sung by a special needs middle school boy who gave it more than his all.  Half way through the nearly four minute version of the Star Spangle Banner I looked over at Tina who was just balling her eyes out.  She said, "Thats the best I ever heard."

We spent the rest of the morning watching friends compete and then headed home about one.  Amanda was so worn out she fell asleep in the car.  The last time that happened was 2005.  She went to bed at 8:30 last night and slept twelve hours, only because I woke her up for church.

We have two more Special Olympics this month.  One is for the county and the second is for state.  this will be our first trip to state, so we are very excited about it.

Gold isn't free

Training for the Special Olympics

She saw enough

Sunday afternoon I was on the couch watching the Winter Olympics. It is only once every four years that I get to watch the Nordic Combined event and I wanted to enjoy it. For those of you who don't know what Nordic Combined is, it is a duel event. In the morning is ski jumping and in the afternoon is cross country skiing. I don't begin to understand the elements of ski jumping judging. There is so much more to it than just how far someone can fly and land in one piece.

Amanda sat beside me and asked what I was doing. I told her that the Olympics were on and they were fun to watch. She stared at the TV in horror and after seeing a German fly through the air, she quickly turned off the TV. I took the remote and turned it back on. She turned it off. I turned it back on and told her to stop it. I swear I am not taking a blogger's license with what she said next, "Can't do that special Olympics. I get killed."

Oh my lord, I had to reassure that won't be an event this this year. And, even if it were we wouldn't let her do it.

More than a special day

Yesterday was the Special Olympics in Bowie County.  This has become my favorite day of the year, surpassing Christmas, Thanksgiving, Superbowl Sunday, and my birthday.

The Special Olympics was founded to allow the physically and mentally challenged an opportunity to participate and compete in athletic events.  It gives these athletes an opportunity to shine.

What I love about it is that while these special people are having their day and loving it, it is made possible by a host of "normal" people who for one day put the complications, drama, and complexities of their own lives on hold to make sure this day happens.  All over the track and field I saw hugs, laughter, handholding, cheering, friendship and true joy by all those participating.

Amanda, like all atheletes at the event, was assigned a helper from a school.  Hers was a senior from Texas Senior High School by the name of Faith.  She is a lovely young lady who has  a warm smile and is training for a half marathon.  But when she helped Amanda run the 25 meter assisted race she was almost breathless as Amanda came in third out of five.  Amanda does not have depth perception and had no idea how the finish line was, so she just pumps her legs and one free arm and goes as fast as her little body will let her.  Both were equally excited.

Yesterday will stay with me for a long time, because not only did I see my child do well in her events but I heard her speak more than ever before.  She said things such as:

• Best year ever
•  I want my yogurt
• Thank you no work, Special Olympics
• When do it again?

After so many years of only yes and no answers and the single question of, "why?' I just eat up every word she has to say.

Now today it is back to the normal routine of our lives, but the glow on my face is not just because I forgot to put sunscreen on myself after I watched Tina lather up Amanda, it's because yesterday I got the best present, biggest meal, my team won, and I turned 39 again all rolled into one.