She Ain't Heavy....
Thursday we all attended a ceremony at the local theater in support of Linds as she received an award. The UROC's are presented annually to young people who contribute in the community and have a positive influence amongst their peers. It also recognizes kids who face adversity and still manage to do great things in spite of it. Lastly (but certainly not least!), they acknowledge organizations and individuals who devote their time and energy to programs aimed at youth. A very special bunch of people.
It was a wonderful night and I'm extremely proud of Linds for all the hard work she's done this year. Overcoming anxiety and depression are no easy feat and, for a kid, that's tenfold. She was in a very dark place not long ago and it's taken a tremendous amount of courage and determination to get where she is now. It's always a work in progress, but she's doing great things and has so much to offer...I just know she'll do something great.
I'm extremely thankful that a few special people (at her new school) have recognized the potential in Linds and have worked with her towards realizing her dreams. She's a bright, creative kid and they've provided opportunities for her to showcase her art, photography and writing. She's been hooked up with people in the community who are involved in the local arts scene and the networking she's doing is constantly opening new doors for her. It's sparked an energy in her that the other school had extinguished...I always knew what they didn't - that, given the right tools, this kid could fly. She just needed people who believed in and supported her. Apparently, she was nominated by several different people, all who've been extremely important in her development this year and I'm extremely grateful to each and every one of them. This is the bio that they put together that was read just before she accepted her award:
Pass me a bloody Kleenex already! Seriously, I'm extremely proud of Linds and thankful to those who've surrounded her with love, encouragement and support this year. It's made a world of difference.
O.K., enough gushing....now let me tell you why my kid REALLY rocks. All the award recipients were seated in the front rows and Lindsay was sitting alone when she spotted a friend in the front row. She left her seat for a few minutes to go say hello and, when she returned, twobitches nice girls were seated in her seat and the one next to it. I was sitting about 10 rows up and watched as things unfolded. Linds was obviously explaining to bitch "A" that she had her seat and would have to move. The girl wasn't responding and I then watched as Linds assumed her "oh no you DIDN'T" pose (seen it many times...she practices it on me. It's kinda scary). She does not back down and that's not always a good thing. Now, my instinct was to jump up and go save her as I've always done, but I'm learning that that usually doesn't help the situation in the long run. I turned to her teacher beside me and went, "o.k., let's see how this plays out". In the meantime, a girl and her mother in front of us said they knew the girls, who were real trouble makers. Great.
The lights dimmed to signal showtime and there was Linds, hovered over dumb and dumber, who apparently still were brain dead and weren't budging. Boy, were they stupid. The longer they sat there, the lower Linds hunched over them and gave them what we like to call her "staredown". Again, quite intimidating, even though she is all of 90 pounds. You know the old "NO FEAR" saying that used to be printed on t-shirts?....that was invented for her.
Things had come to a standoff and I didn't see a peaceful resolution in sight and was getting restless in my seat as I waited for the bomb of Lindsay to go off. Normally she's very polite and respectful of others, but when she's pissed off LOOK OUT. I could see that she was quite prepared to just plant herself there for the duration.
I helplessly turned back to her teacher at that point....."what now?". She then volunteered to go down and pry Linds away and sit in another spot with her. Whew. Thankfully, no figure four leglocks were necessary and those girls didn't leave in an ambulance. Seriously though, there's something both reassuring and worrying in knowing that your kid can stand her ground. I suggested to her later on that maybe it wasn't worth the battle and that finding another seat would've taken a lot less energy. But I'm glad to know that she's no pushover.
Anyhow, a perfect night...other than the fact that the ex dropped his dog on his head (don't ask) and the woman in front of me kept falling asleep and doing the head bob. At one point her head was tilted right back (almost into my bloody lap) and her mouth was wide open (I think she might've even been drooling??!). It's possible that someone might've had a little nip or two before the event - she did provide some pretty good entertainment though.
Here are some pics from the festivities. It really was a good night:
Righty-O Vanna, just turn the damn letters already.
(See that envelope behind the award? After the ceremony was over and we were heading to the parking lot I asked Linds what it was and she replied "well I was kinda hoping there was money in it". It was a write up of the bio they'd put together for her. Typical Lindsay)
Nice Ty. Why don't you show us how you really feel? (FTR: it is Ty's mission to mess up every picture he's in. To date, he's pretty much perfect). FTR, he bitched all night about the fact that I shrunk his shirt. Solution: go do your own laundry. :)
OK lovely, Linds....now time to let your guard down and show the real you........
.....................now that's the girl I know and love.
It was a wonderful night and I'm extremely proud of Linds for all the hard work she's done this year. Overcoming anxiety and depression are no easy feat and, for a kid, that's tenfold. She was in a very dark place not long ago and it's taken a tremendous amount of courage and determination to get where she is now. It's always a work in progress, but she's doing great things and has so much to offer...I just know she'll do something great.
I'm extremely thankful that a few special people (at her new school) have recognized the potential in Linds and have worked with her towards realizing her dreams. She's a bright, creative kid and they've provided opportunities for her to showcase her art, photography and writing. She's been hooked up with people in the community who are involved in the local arts scene and the networking she's doing is constantly opening new doors for her. It's sparked an energy in her that the other school had extinguished...I always knew what they didn't - that, given the right tools, this kid could fly. She just needed people who believed in and supported her. Apparently, she was nominated by several different people, all who've been extremely important in her development this year and I'm extremely grateful to each and every one of them. This is the bio that they put together that was read just before she accepted her award:
Outstanding Youth
Lindsay is very involved in the community. She particularly enjoys the Creative Arts such as Art Platphorm, photography, writing, poetry and volunteering. Her works have been published in Youthink, a magazine for youth and possibly the Richmond Review in the future. Most recently, Lindsay was a very active organizer of Elev8, the Youth Week art extravaganza. All the while, she still managed to earn high marks at school. Lindsay has come a long way to overcome adversity in her life and deserves recognition for realizing her dreams and using her talents to promote arts to Richmond's youth community
Pass me a bloody Kleenex already! Seriously, I'm extremely proud of Linds and thankful to those who've surrounded her with love, encouragement and support this year. It's made a world of difference.
O.K., enough gushing....now let me tell you why my kid REALLY rocks. All the award recipients were seated in the front rows and Lindsay was sitting alone when she spotted a friend in the front row. She left her seat for a few minutes to go say hello and, when she returned, two
The lights dimmed to signal showtime and there was Linds, hovered over dumb and dumber, who apparently still were brain dead and weren't budging. Boy, were they stupid. The longer they sat there, the lower Linds hunched over them and gave them what we like to call her "staredown". Again, quite intimidating, even though she is all of 90 pounds. You know the old "NO FEAR" saying that used to be printed on t-shirts?....that was invented for her.
Things had come to a standoff and I didn't see a peaceful resolution in sight and was getting restless in my seat as I waited for the bomb of Lindsay to go off. Normally she's very polite and respectful of others, but when she's pissed off LOOK OUT. I could see that she was quite prepared to just plant herself there for the duration.
I helplessly turned back to her teacher at that point....."what now?". She then volunteered to go down and pry Linds away and sit in another spot with her. Whew. Thankfully, no figure four leglocks were necessary and those girls didn't leave in an ambulance. Seriously though, there's something both reassuring and worrying in knowing that your kid can stand her ground. I suggested to her later on that maybe it wasn't worth the battle and that finding another seat would've taken a lot less energy. But I'm glad to know that she's no pushover.
Anyhow, a perfect night...other than the fact that the ex dropped his dog on his head (don't ask) and the woman in front of me kept falling asleep and doing the head bob. At one point her head was tilted right back (almost into my bloody lap) and her mouth was wide open (I think she might've even been drooling??!). It's possible that someone might've had a little nip or two before the event - she did provide some pretty good entertainment though.
Here are some pics from the festivities. It really was a good night:
Righty-O Vanna, just turn the damn letters already.
(See that envelope behind the award? After the ceremony was over and we were heading to the parking lot I asked Linds what it was and she replied "well I was kinda hoping there was money in it". It was a write up of the bio they'd put together for her. Typical Lindsay)
Nice Ty. Why don't you show us how you really feel? (FTR: it is Ty's mission to mess up every picture he's in. To date, he's pretty much perfect). FTR, he bitched all night about the fact that I shrunk his shirt. Solution: go do your own laundry. :)
OK lovely, Linds....now time to let your guard down and show the real you........
.....................now that's the girl I know and love.
posted by Deb at 12:12 PM
3 Comments:
That is so wonderful, Deb! You must be so proud of and so happy for Linds on all that she has overcome and for the recognition of her strengths and talents. Congrats to her - that is so lovely.
I know how painful it is to see your child suffer through anxiety and depression, and how every little improvement is a cause for celebration. So this is huge!
I hope you are having the Mother of All Mother's Day!
Lovely post, Deb. And congrats to Linds for all the work she's accomplished, from that little blurb (I'm guessing from the program) it certainly sounds like she making wonderful strides and is bound for greatness!
I hope you're having a brilliant Mother's Day! :)
Wow, you must be so proud of her! Looks like you did a mighty fine job of raising your daughter. She's also very stunning. You must have to beat the boys off with a stick.
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