the truth.

the other day (a little over a week ago) was the first time i ever considered myself a role model to anyone other than my own sisters. a few of my friends and i (cheer moms) were talking about kids and bullying, and of course i don't have kids, but i've always been an advocate for children's needs (love, home, education, socialization). kids are a joy, i loved every minute i spent with my cheerleaders. being around them made me want kids of my own. being a coach got me through some of the hardest times of my life. but i never thought about what my presence in their lives might be doing for them. 

so, when one of the moms said that i was a great role model for their girls, it occurred to me that of course i was having an impact on them.  no matter how hard the organization i was working with made it for us, lisa and i fought for our girls every day.  i stood my ground when it was necessary, and i never gave in when i felt that things were being done the wrong way.    

whenever we cross the path of children, whether they be our own or someone else's, we should think about how their interaction with us can affect their lives.  they are our future, they are our legacy.  how we treat them, respect them, teach them, shapes the people they become.  we are accountable, and should hold ourselves so.

i hope that my girls know how much i love them, how proud i am of them, and how much they were needed by me at that time in my life.  i hope they know that they were worth the blood, sweat, and tears, and that they can do anything, because i believe in them, and their parents believe in them, and even complete strangers believe in them.  i was lucky to coach my girls, i'm lucky to still be a part of some of their lives.