The Best Day

Luc is in the back with the Shrek Green shorts on........

Today Mary had a good day. Fever gone, mojo on high. Workouts complete. Day at the beach with my son..... fan-freaking-tastic. I love this kid, he's so much life wrapped into one little guy with amazing blond hair.

Each time we get to the beach he looks for someone to play with. He typically finds the one kid digging a sandcastle alone and he walks right up.

"Hi my name is Luc." He says, "Can I help you build a castle?" He's always well received. Usually the kids ask him to bring water from the lake and dump it in the hole.

In not too long of a time there will be 20 kids digging, building, laughing so hard their sides hurt.

Yesterday we were in Walgreens and Luc stopped. It was a Sports Illustrated magazine and Michael Phelps was on the cover.

"Mom he's so cool." Luc said as he studied the picture.

"You know Luc...." I told him, "When he was your age a lot of people would tell him he wasn't smart enough. They told him he couldn't do anything." And I told him that because at 7 years old, Luc has been through the same. Even as we did find the right school, the right classroom, the right support...... there is still talk of what he can not do as opposed to what he can.

He thought about it for a moment.

"Can I be like Michael Phelps?" He asked me. I smiled.

"Of course you can." I told him, "Except you can be something even better. You can be Luc Eggers." He smiled at me and gave me a hug. And then I reminded him that I was always going to be in his corner. I reminded him that whenever someone tells him he can't, I will tell him three times louder that he can. I promised him that no matter what he could always know that I believed in him. That I would always believe him. And that he would never ever be alone in his efforts to achieve his dreams.

Then he changed the subject.

"Mom remember not too long ago you didn't finish that race." He of course was referring to my IMLP DNF. "Remember you got hit in the head." Oh how I wish I would forget Luc, how I wish I would forget.

"I remember." I promised him.

"Is your head much better Mom?" I told him that it was. "Are you going to race again?" I told him I was. "Is that why you are going to Texas?"

"It sure is Luc." And I realized now more than ever how much our kids learn from us. He saw me get knocked down and he needs to see me get back up.

Sport is the greatest metaphor for life. We keep watching these Olympics and we keep watching the impossible become possible. Through hurdles or 200 meters. People who realize a dream against all odds.

Even some who don't realize a dream. The runner who tore his Achilles. Luc told me that he should go get some rest and try again. Just like I did that time I had to wear the boot. Wow, I thought, that was back in 2005. For a kid who is labeled with learning disabilities this kid sure remembers stuff.

Which means he remembers what I do when I fall. Which means he's watching and he's learning that when he falls down, he should get back up. He's seen me have great races and he's seen me have really bad ones. He's seen me walk and he's seen me....... G-A-S-P....... DNF.

Luc brings me out of myself in so many ways. As I have previously mentioned I just went through something really really hard. What I wanted to do was get into bed, pull the sheets over my head and disappear. What I sometimes wished for was a truck to run me over.

Sometimes I feel like there is this cloud of sadness following me.

But what does that teach my son???? That teaches my son how to allow life to swallow us up. That's not me and that's not what Curt and I will ever teach him to do.

Last night Curt and Luc drove me to teach yoga because I wasn't feeling well. At first I resisted..... I can drive myself..... and then I thought about what that could teach Luc. Curt told him Mommy wasn't feeling well and this was something we could do to help. No it didn't cure me, but the gesture said so much about being cared about, being cared for and being loved.

Luc will learn from that too. He will learn from every single thing we do.

So they can keep labeling him. Just like they kept labeling Michael Phelps. They can keep telling Luc what he can't do. I will keep telling him what he can do. And I will shout it louder and I will say it with more meaning. Because I mean it. And I believe it.

They can shake their heads and tell me that this little boy with a speech delay and a fine motor skill delay will amount to nothing. They can hold that dream and their insistence on being right.

Luc will keep walking up to kids on the beach and turning it into a great big party. He will continue to look up to people like Michale Phelps and even..... to his Mom and Dad. Luc will keep putting one foot in front of the other. Luc will keep moving forward.

Because no one in the world can tell him that he doesn't have enough guts. No one in the world can tell him that he doesn't have enough heart. And no one in the world can tell him that he will never amount to anything.

If you've ever met this kid then you know exactly what I mean.

When we decided to have a baby...... we had this idea in our heads about how it would be and how it would change our lives. It absolutely did in more ways than I could have ever imagined. Luc gave new meaning to my life. He has made it full of rich beautiful color.

Luc has taught me the most valuable lessons in the world. Things I did not learn in a classroom, from a lecture, from a book or from standing on a podium. Luc taught me the meaning of life. The meaning of love. And the meaning of family.

Go LUC!