Be Careful What You Promise Your Kids - Part 1

Be Careful What You Promise Your Kids

Part 1
Life Without Training Wheels


Prologue

Jack has been asking for a motorcycle ever since Terry bought his 1150 GS. So, as a concerned parent, what’s the most logical answer? “You can’t have a motorcycle until you learn to ride your bike without training wheels.” But daddy, they make bikes with training wheels! Sorry, kid, but we’re not going to go that route. We figured we had AT LEAST until summer, maybe fall. Thus begins our promise to Jack…

Sunday, February 12, 2006

Jack woke up and promptly announced, “I want to ride my bike on the grass without training wheels.” Wow. Hmmm. Okay, let’s roll. So off to the park we went – Terry and me on our bikes (carrying a backpack with room for the training wheels, hopefully), Jack taking his last ride on his bike with the training wheels. We knew going into this that if he was successful we had to hold up our end of the deal. This was going to cost us some money. We found the perfect spot (a.k.a. no visible holes or drops) and proceeded to dismantle the training wheels. Jack eagerly watched as Terry took them off and laid them next to the backpack. Judgment Day had come for Mr. Jack. So on he climbed with Terry holding onto the seat and away they went. And I’ll be damned! Jack went at it like he’d been doing it for years! Soooo proud!! I snapped away with the camera, running behind them as to not miss a shot. He stopped with his foot brake like a champ and wore a grin that exuded pride and confidence. We all wore the same grin. Jack never fell. This was going to cost us some money. Damn. Next were the concrete basketball courts. A little more frightening for Jack (OK, for all as we knew that a crash meant a Bandaid and he HATES Bandaids). Once again he proved himself to be a pro rider. Every time he spotted a ‘bigger’ kid, he’d yell, “Hey you! Hey you! Look at me!” Some gave him a big ol’ smile, others gave him a “beat it, kid” look. Around the court he went, turning only to the left as he hadn’t yet felt comfortable to veer right. Away he rode again and again until it was time to head home - had to show all the neighborhood kids. We all rode home together, not a training wheel in sight.

As soon as we got home, out went the orange street cones and away went the Bike Master. He proudly yelled to everyone he saw, “Look at me! I’m riding without training wheels!” We knew he could it. He knew he could do it; he just needed to do it on his time, no one else’s. Kid’s got a way of taking his time and figuring out what he needs to do and how to do it in order to be successful. He’s NOTHING like his dad. Nope. Not a bit. And what does mama think? Well, I can’t stop smiling. We have a very cool kid.