Piano as a Sport? Who Knew!

 Growing up JD and I both were in sports. He was an Amazing soccer player, (although it's  the only thing he's humble about and will tell you other wise). He actually had a chance to try out for the Olympic team  but chickened out. He thought he lacked some of those "Mexican Ninja" soccer skills. But, he did gain some really nice looking legs! Today, he's all about basketball. He's like, "Babe, I gotta get back in shape before the next season starts!" as he's checkin him self out in the bathroom mirror. Next thing you know he's on the stair stepper,wearing his little bandana, Jammin to some to some Vanilla Ice.  "Ice, Ice Baby da da da da da na nana"  He knows the whole thing by heart. And sings it proudly.
Then he comes home and says, "Hey, Guess what Babe? I just lost 40 pounds." " Ah, thats great Baby!" I say," Looky What I made you,a Chocolaty Chocolate Cake. Eat the whole thing!"
I was also athletic, but not as hardcore as Hot Legs over here. There was a time,though , when I wanted to be just as good or even better than the boys. I remember being in the 9th grade and running to my Dad and saying, " Dad, the coach thinks I'm really fast and I want to try out for the Football team!!!!"  (Okay, I 'm sure looking at me now, your probably thinking, "Gurrrl!! You could hold your own." )  Ya, probably now, minus the fast and add the tinkling when running part. But  back then, not so much. In 9th grade I was 5 foot 2 and weighed 102, 105 when "Aunt Flo" was visiting. But by golly, I knew I could do it. My Dad looked at me and said,"Are you Crazy?  Mirar Mija,They will clobber you,!"  (When my Dad is serious, all of sudden he breaks out in his Spanglish). "But, Daddy" I said,"I would be the quarter back. All I'd have to do is run AND she said I'm fast."  I was Dead Dog Serious!  I know,  I Know! The quarter back doesn't do the running.  I never said I knew anything about sports, I just said I was athletic!  
Ashleigh is our middle baby. She looks exactly like me, but complete opposite.  It was when we first moved into our home that I realized how different we actually were.  One day I go outside to check on the kids, I look and see Averie running around, dirt all over her face as if she just ate the whole front lawn. And then there's Ethan, working on his massive scooter moves. And  then there's  my Ashleigh Nicole. Standing on the side walk, in a pretty little church dress, holding her purse. She waves to one of the boys across the street and bats her beautiful brown eyes and says," Hi, (little boys name here)!" " OH, No you Don't Ashleigh Nicole Pena!!," I  yell as if she just ran off and eloped with some hooligan,"YOu go put on some jeans and throw some dirt on your face!" "You will not flirt with boys unless they are on your team!" 
From that day on I was determined to put all 3 in sports, especially Ashleigh. I was not going to have a "Prissy" girl.
Ethan has played baseball for about 4 yrs. and the girls tried t-ball. Last fall we signed Ethan up for fall ball like we always do and Averie decides she wants to play Coach pitch. Okay, I look at Ashleigh and she says "I'll try softball, Momma."  " Are you sure?"  I say .  So, the next week we are at softball practice.
I was so excited that all three of my babies were playing baseball/ softball. I began thinking ,"I'll bedazzle a cute shirt  that says, " BASEBALL MOMS ROCK!!" and all three of their names will sparkle like diamonds across my back. "Oh, it's All planned out in my head. All except how the heck I'm going to get them to all their games. "Not important!" I shake it off.  I had an amazing baseball mom shirt in the works.
Well, I'm there watching and cringing as I watch her practice.The team mom comes over to me and says, " Wow, she's tall. She's "going " to have an arm. I'd like her to pitch!"
Like I said she played one season of tee- ball and anyone who has seen tee-ball knows there's no catching in tee-ball. It's like a bunch rabid monkeys running around a fenced in field with the ball flying "EveryWhere! " I looked at her and thought, " Well, Bless her heart, apparently this team mom is either a little "Special" or she's completely blind!" I politely respond, " Umm, Well that could be a problem. She's not so good on the throwing part and she can't catch worth diddly squat."  She looked at me and said with a straight face, " Oh, thats not a problem. The pitcher doesn't need to catch the ball. She can Duck and Cover!!"  I guess she thought the same rules apply for dodgeball AND softball. Ashleigh played maybe 3 games and that was it.  Well, there went my sparkly baseball moms rock shirt. :0(
Well, I can say that I have finally surrendered to the idea that Ashleigh had to be an athlete just like her Bubba and Averie. I was trying so hard to fit her into my little cookie cutter shape, and it just would not work. She's mine after all, Right. She has mine and JD's genes. Wrong! I couldn't have been more wrong. She is the Lords and He has created her with her own special talents and gifts. I was reminded of that this past Tuesday. We decided to sign her up for piano lessons and she was beyond thrilled. I took her to her first lesson and as I sat and watched her play I had to fight that "UGLY" cry. She beamed and I could see how proud of herself she was. She was finally good at something. All the sports we had put her in was almost like a constant reminder that she wasn't "as good". It wasn't that we weren't proud of her. Cause we were, we just couldn't see that passion that the other two had when they held a ball, or ran to first. We wanted that for her. But she's Ashleigh Sweet, quite, can I read my book Ashleigh. And now she's, " Momma, come and watch me play the piano." Ashleigh. And she's sooo good at it and she is sooo passionate about it. I couldn't be more proud of who the Lord has created her to be. 

This is me,
Jenii Marie

Psalms 139:13-14

You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body

and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it