My daughter has taught me a lot about persistence, diligence, and even obstinance – the good kind, that keeps you working on a difficult task even when everyone else has given up.
I grew up as a teacher’s dream. Learning came easily to me, and I loved everything about it, even the busy-work (remember word searches or color by number … Not sure what they ever taught, but I liked them).
My daughter is the opposite.
She works much harder than anyone I know and each little success comes slowly, but when it does come, what a CELEBRATION!
Today was one of those great celebrations. For her 6th birthday she received her bike, affectionately named Puppy Love, and she started trying to ride it immediately.
She worked on it the summer that she was 6, and the summer she was 7, and the summer she was 8. Every year she made steady progress, but still she couldn’t quite get it all coordinated.
But today that all changed!!! My 9 year old went outside during our morning break from school and picked up her bike to try again. She put it at the top of the hill on our driveway, pushed off, balanced and got her feet onto the pedals … Then the really amazing part clicked. She kept her balance while pedaling and even turning. Hooray!
Over and over again she circled the driveway. (I canceled our lessons for the next hour so that she could enjoy her success – okay, so that I could enjoy her success)
She is one tough kid. I think I might have given up after the third year of struggle, but she kept at it. ~ In fact, she has kept at it so long that she really has already outgrown that bike, even though it is her first time riding it independently.
I am always amazed by this child. She has taught me more than I ever will teach her.
Persistence … hmm… I have a few difficult projects that I need to get back to, and I’m finally feeling motivated to tackle them again.