Lessons from the Lamp Post: Lesson 446: Raise the Bar

Good rainy evening to you, Readers.

The typical Erie rain has started to fall.

God bless us all.

We'll have dampness through next May.

My arthritic joints are already starting to throb in anticipation.

We are starting to think of moving our outdoor games,

to indoors.

Clark School had a Family Game night on Thursday.

Mrs. Eloise recommends Qwirkle

Giant UNO

and Rush Hour.

Speaking of driving,

Ellen Louise is coming along nicely

in her required 65 hours of road experience.

The parking part is giving her grief.

The rains came off of a very beautiful week at the Lamp Post.

Beauty is found in all kinds of weather.

Erieites really appreciate a nice day, though.

Natalie and I got in a couple of jogs through the park.

She ain't afraid of no clowns!

Sam finally read a decent book!

Which one, Readers?

Sam placed second in his age group in our region

for the NFL Punt, Pass, & Kick Competition.

We went out to my alma mater last Saturday to see him compete.

I think Sam looks quite natural in front of that sign.

His current desire is to be a coach and a teacher.

Currently my nine year old son is deciding between an MLB contract

and attending Edinboro University.

Sam says it all depends on what is offered.

It was a fun afternoon for everyone.

Lesson learned from the PPK Competition:

Raise the bar!

Sam knew that he had made the first round of competition way back in the summer. He's been practicing on the Little Gridders football field behind the Lamp Post for many weeks, punting, passing, and kicking that pigskin. The Punt, Pass, and Kick is determined by total feet of the three events combined. As Sam's Momma, I can honestly say that my boy has been giving it his all, practicing with his Dad in the evenings and on weekends, but in relative isolation.

We went to the competition, and Sam placed second out of 28 kids in the region. We were pleased that he did very well. His hard work paid off! Sam is waiting to hear if his total feet is enough to move on to the next round at Heinz Field in November. It all depends on the other competitions on the western side of the state.

The interesting thing is that the first place kid beat Sam by a good 30 feet--just an ordinary kid from Corry, at least a head smaller than Sam--no extraordinary size of this boy. Just seeing that score of the boy ahead of him, raised the bar for Sam. He came home that very weekend and started booting the ball 10 yards further than he had previously. Sam had not grown. Sam had not changed his diet. Sam did not get a personal trainer. He simply saw some other kid his own age do something better than he did. That was all it took. Just seeing the bar raised.

That is exactly why I occasionally post my workout group photos and fitness event photos on this blog. It is not to boast about my own accomplishments. It is to hopefully motivate others to stay healthy by getting outside and moving around. Stepping into the energy of positive, healthy people benefits not only you, but the community at large.