How well I remember the anticipation we felt fourteen years ago today when you finally decided to make your appearance in this world!
You started 8th grade this week and I was struck by how much you have
grown/changed since you began middle school just two short years ago.
It was great to see you confidently exploring YOUR school on the night
of the open house, navigating the process and school with ease, helping Toby, and visiting your favorite teacher from last year
(Mr. Baldwin).
Your body loves to move and while you classify yourself as "not-an-athlete," I'm not sure that's accurate. You regularly bike to school (5+ miles each way), still love flipping on the trampoline, and thrive in track & field as well as swim team.
You had a phenomenal season last year on swim team! You excel at the endurance events: you regularly swim the 500 yard freestyle and you've gained both confidence and skill. You worked exceptionally hard this year and took great pride in your efforts, coming SO close to qualifying for Regionals in the 200 and the 500. I look forward to watching you reach your goals this year as you're taller, stronger, and still in the 13-14 age bracket!
Your musical interests have expanded to learning the guitar and while we'll need to be strategic in adding another lesson to your busy schedule, I look forward to hearing you play guitar!
This past year has been a rocky one for you - and for us. You encountered social complexities in the form of drama, gossip, the loyalty and motives of friends/classmates. Not to mention the ratcheting up of academic expectations and responsibility/ independence. A wise person told us recently that these years "are ALL about building TRUST" - trust between kids/parents, between friends, with adults in your community - and this was a good lens for us to use as we reflected on the year.
Jonah, you are kind and sensitive. You have good
friends with whom you are close, and I am secretly relieved that you do not
need to "fit in" or follow the crowd. My heart aches for
you in your romantic heartbreaks, especially when you bury your
feelings under your "I'm fine" Iron-Man facade, but I've also watched
you establish strong and loyal friendships with girls and I believe that
these relationships will be the basis of your future romances.
While we may have clashed quite a bit last year around academics and missing assignments, I realized in the end that grades, while important, are just one piece of school. At the Awards Ceremony at the end of the school year you won the "Caring" award (one of the IB pillars). I have rarely been more proud of you!
This summer you were gone more than you were home. Between two canoe trips, scout camp, church camp, a week at Jaden's cabin, and a mission trip, you were away for 6 weeks! We observed how happy and confident you were in those days you were at home. It dawned on me that anytime you can be active and in nature, working (paddling/ camping), or giving of yourself (Chicago mission trip), you are feeding your soul.
May you listen to your soul and continue to embrace musical expression, the outdoors, and opportunities to help others in this next year and I hope that this is the first day of a wonderful year for you!
I am incredibly proud of the young man you have become and I love you more than you could guess!
XOXOXO,
Mom
You started 8th grade this week and I was struck by how much you have
grown/changed since you began middle school just two short years ago.
It was great to see you confidently exploring YOUR school on the night
of the open house, navigating the process and school with ease, helping Toby, and visiting your favorite teacher from last year
(Mr. Baldwin).Your body loves to move and while you classify yourself as "not-an-athlete," I'm not sure that's accurate. You regularly bike to school (5+ miles each way), still love flipping on the trampoline, and thrive in track & field as well as swim team.
 |
| Take your mark! |
You had a phenomenal season last year on swim team! You excel at the endurance events: you regularly swim the 500 yard freestyle and you've gained both confidence and skill. You worked exceptionally hard this year and took great pride in your efforts, coming SO close to qualifying for Regionals in the 200 and the 500. I look forward to watching you reach your goals this year as you're taller, stronger, and still in the 13-14 age bracket!
Your musical interests have expanded to learning the guitar and while we'll need to be strategic in adding another lesson to your busy schedule, I look forward to hearing you play guitar!
This past year has been a rocky one for you - and for us. You encountered social complexities in the form of drama, gossip, the loyalty and motives of friends/classmates. Not to mention the ratcheting up of academic expectations and responsibility/ independence. A wise person told us recently that these years "are ALL about building TRUST" - trust between kids/parents, between friends, with adults in your community - and this was a good lens for us to use as we reflected on the year.
Jonah, you are kind and sensitive. You have good
friends with whom you are close, and I am secretly relieved that you do not
need to "fit in" or follow the crowd. My heart aches for
you in your romantic heartbreaks, especially when you bury your
feelings under your "I'm fine" Iron-Man facade, but I've also watched
you establish strong and loyal friendships with girls and I believe that
these relationships will be the basis of your future romances. While we may have clashed quite a bit last year around academics and missing assignments, I realized in the end that grades, while important, are just one piece of school. At the Awards Ceremony at the end of the school year you won the "Caring" award (one of the IB pillars). I have rarely been more proud of you!
May you listen to your soul and continue to embrace musical expression, the outdoors, and opportunities to help others in this next year and I hope that this is the first day of a wonderful year for you! I am incredibly proud of the young man you have become and I love you more than you could guess!
XOXOXO,
Mom
No comments:
Post a Comment