Control part 2

I did a post a few months ago about having control of absolutely nothing. But Saturday I witnessed control in my eldest son that humbled me and reminded me that he is becoming the man that Lord intended and I need to see that and quit trying to shape him into the man that I want him to become.

When we visited the group home, the karate class did some sparring demonstrations. That is usually the favorite of anyone in the classes. Several people sparred, including some bare-knuckles rounds. As it was winding down, I noticed Brown Bear putting on his gear. I also saw a couple of people talking to him and shaking their head. Strange, but oh well.

He entered the sparring area and this young man came out, from my left, jumping up and down like a professional boxer, and jumped into the arena. He was a good 20 pounds heavier than Brown Bear and (being the wonderful mother that I am) thought that he had finally met his match and was going to be pounded good. (he normally beats just about everyone so don't worry about his safety!)

About 2 minutes into the round, I noticed that he was really holding back and letting the other guy get in some good hits, which is extremely unusual for him. The round lasted about 3 minutes with Brown Bear winning by 1 point. As the opponent took off his gear I noticed that he had some physical and mental limitations that weren't apparent at the beginning.

As I sat there and thought about that for a minute, a sweet sensai came up behind me and wanted to talk with me. She said that she hadn't seen Brown Bear spar in awhile and was very impressed with his technique. Now I was thinking "how can she say this when he didn't even really get to show off all of his talent?" Her next words was like a punch in the gut for my selfish thinking and made me misty-eyed at my son's character.

She then proceeded to tell me that hardly anyone will spar this young man because he goes in swinging and doesn't have much control. If they do find someone to spar him then they proceed to humiliate him by pounding him good and never letting him score a point. She said Brown Bear is the first that gave him a good round and made him think that he fought well without being embarrassed. She pointed out that he had amazing control of his punches and kicks that she hadn't seen in awhile in someone his age and he had the makings of a good man and a good leader in his class.

I was humbled by this and the fact that she took the time to come tell me. I talked to Brown Bear about it later and told him that I was proud of him. He shrugged it off in typical Brown Bear fashion. While I would have ate up all those words and begged for more. He just accepted it, thanked me and moved on to how much fun he had. Humble, controlled, and character. Those are the qualities I thought we needed to work on more and those are the ones he had in spades. I just wasn't looking hard enough and resting in the Lord's words that "He who began a good work in us would finish it."

What a precious young man!