It is hard, almost impossible for me not to boast about my tiny gymnast. Because tiny she is! Picking her up is like lifting a feather... So frail, so light, and yet so strong!
I can see her little muscles all over her tiny body. She is strong. Her coach was saying that even though she is by far the youngest in the team (6 months younger then the next youngest girl and over one year younger then the others), Leyla is one of the strongest gymnasts in the team.
Leyla is also one of the most dedicated. In more then half the classes she is the hardest working girl. Flexible, she bends into shapes I could not know the human body can bend.
Sometimes her very young age shows, when her concentration slips towards the end of the three and a half hours of gruesome training. Not for long, and she regains it quickly, but she does do it. And yet, when we get home, long past her normal bedtime, she is still bouncing around like a pin pong ball.
Her coach said that Leyla blew her mind away with her willingness to train through pain, to jump back on the bars when rips break on her little hands. Her palms and fingers, so soft before, are callused now. But are still the hands of a five year old that juggles long hours at school with long hours of hard training, and still has the energy to just be a normal child.
Last night, her coach said that Leyla amazes her with her powerful body, her flexibility and concentration, with her talent and strong mind. A coach that hardly ever praises said that she can see Leyla making it.
My heart just melts, when I look at this little child tht is mine while belonging to herself.
No comments:
Post a Comment