As soon as we mentioned it, he seemed upset. He wanted to keep his white belt. Could he still wear it? Would he have to get rid of it?
Tonight was the belt ceremony, and he's just the funniest kid.
Now, I'm used to having people watch my kid and whisper and laugh. Not in a mean way! Just, you know, some kids are funny and draw your attention. If you've ever been to the school concert, that kid who's be-bopping around while all the other kids complacently do the hand gestures, that's my big kid.
So it is sort of funny that Lochlan is an attention-grabbing kid, too. He's the one who leaps like a lemur to his spot on the mat. Or who *always* forgets to wait for "go" on a "one two three go" activity and has to return to the starting point so they can begin again (like, three or four times in a row). Or the day the teacher had to "superglue" Lochlan's feet to the mat for a move, but every time he'd take a step, he'd forget and do his jumpy dance again. And then he's got the funniest little Charlie Brown moping walk and a whole series of exasperated facial expressions.
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| I don't even think he's hyper: the kid is just airborne a lot. |
He's also got Big Feelings. He is scared of the jumping over the pool noodle game, and runs off the mat to come sit with me. He takes a while to get warmed up to join the class.
So like I said, he's kind of already the kid that other parents watch. The budding YouTube sensation, if they happen to get the right video.
Tonight he bowed in very politely. They sat in a circle and talked about mindfulness and breathing. They demonstrated their moves. And one of the moves was taking a step, punching, step, punch...
And they did just fine facing the mirror. Then they turned to face the parents, and for some reason, my little homie was just... going diagonally. On the first move, he was just a little off course. On the second, he was decidedly on a collision course with another little girl. The parent tittering began. By the third step, the girl looked discombobulated, and Lochlan was decidedly in her space. Sensei noticed and came over to re-route him, but it was pretty funny.
Then it was time to take off the old belts and be presented with the new ones. I knew it was dicey. They were asked to look forward while throwing their old belt behind them, and Lochlan did. But then while he waited for the teacher to get other people's new belts on, I saw him reach back for his old one, pick it up gently, and touch it to his cheek. Shortly thereafter, he turned to me with tears in his eyes.
And then his whole face turned to a tragedy mask. I saw the other parents doing the face that parents make when little people cry. He turned back to me. I assured him he was okay, and I was going to take his old belt home and keep it forever. He cried quietly but consistently, his shoulders shaking, for a few minutes until the teacher got to him and spoke to him encouragingly. He got his new belt on. They bowed out. Sensei said, "Okay, look for your parent, then go to them and give them a hug."All the other students did. Lochlan stood on the mat looking forlorn. I said, "I'm right here, Buddy. Come give me a hug." I also picked up his belt. He came over, threw himself into my lap, and collapsed in loud sobs.
When he calmed a little, I asked if he wanted a picture with sensei. He did, so we waited in line, but he was crying lightly the whole time. When we got up to sensei, Lochlan turned around for his photo, still crying. Sensei kneeled down to comfort him again and wiped his tears with the sleeve of his own gi. Then we took our picture.
I know you're probably thinking, "Wow, that kid is over-sensitive!" And, maybe yeah. I don't know. I love his big feelings and his sensitive little self, and I think he's going to be fine.
