{"id":5225,"date":"2015-09-20T07:40:21","date_gmt":"2015-09-20T11:40:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=5225"},"modified":"2015-09-20T08:01:23","modified_gmt":"2015-09-20T12:01:23","slug":"amazing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=5225","title":{"rendered":"amazing"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"IMG_5032\"<\/a>When my youngest son was born, we were greeted by all the plethora of standard congratulatory salutations. But there\u2019s something when a child is born with a disability that threatens to damper what should be none other than a celebration\u2026 \u201cYes, I\u2019m humbled and thrilled at the birth of my child and God\u2019s incredible creation \u2014 but I have to change my expectations. This isn\u2019t the life I had planned\u2026 not for him\u2026 not for me.\u201d<\/em> I didn\u2019t say that. But I thought it\u2026 often.<\/p>\n

And no doubt due to the totally penetrating grace of God \u2014 even when I am clueless \u2014 I quickly realized that the blessing of Josh was no less than any other. He was amazing \u2014 just the way he was\u2026 just the way he is.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

While I got there emotionally \u2014 with my dear family and friends who \u201ccame along\u201d \u2014 it was soon apparent that not everyone else in contemporary culture gets that. There was the geneticist who referred to the day of Josh\u2019s birth as \u201cthe saddest day of your whole life.\u201d There was the one resident, callously mumbling after a broken finger that it \u201cwasn\u2019t like he\u2019s ever going to play in the orchestra or anything.\u201d And there were the many who made well-intentioned stabs at encouragement by saying Josh could grow up and \u201cget a great job\u201d bagging at the local grocery store.<\/p>\n

I chose not to focus on those who weren\u2019t where I was. I knew God was calling me to a wiser perspective\u2026 that it was not up to me to decide what my kids could<\/em> and could not<\/em> do. It was not up to me to dictate. It was not up to me to focus only on the perceived end results. It was, however, up to me to celebrate who my son was, how God uniquely wired him, and to encourage him to grow.<\/p>\n

Josh is in 8th grade now. (Careful \u2014 he thinks being the oldest grade in school is akin to something close to \u201cking.\u201d)<\/em> But as one who has watched his older brothers thrive in one of Ohio\u2019s premiere show choir organizations, Josh decided last week to try out at the junior high level.<\/p>\n

Truthfully, I was a bit skeptical at first. The bar is high, and it should be for such a talented organization. But if I was completely transparent, I would also acknowledge that I was weary of the time commitment required on my part \u2014 early a.m. practices, multiple week night practices, and all the supervision necessary, so as not to add more to the director\u2019s already, admirably full plate.\u2028\u2028 And so we spent Monday – Friday last week at show choir tryouts\u2026 up at 5:40 a.m., getting Josh ready, grabbing breakfast, downing the protein, and out the door by 6:30 in order to arrive at least 15 minutes early. We also practiced each night at home, worked on his dance moves, his vocals \u2014 with Dad and big brother joining along.<\/p>\n

Let me add that initially, Josh didn\u2019t comprehend the idea of a \u201ctry out.\u201d He assumed everyone made it. I was worried about that lack of realization \u2014 that is, until Thursday, when on our way, he prayed, \u201cAnd God, I know you have my back, whether I make it or not.\u201d<\/em> \u2028\u2028 I loved that.<\/p>\n

So each morning the 80 some adolescents worked on the newly taught choreography. They danced as a group before the director and judges. I was there in case Josh needed anything. His teacher also graciously volunteered to come in early multiple days, helping with any supervision. (She is excellent \u2014 love our community!!)<\/em> Then on Friday, it was Josh\u2019s turn to actually sing before the judges \u2014 only 10-20 seconds. All students sit still while only one sings.<\/p>\n

From this semi-humble parent\u2019s vantage point, Josh\u2019s singing was excellent. His enunciation was a little off \u2014 maybe his tone a bit, too \u2014 but nothing took away from the beauty of his words. As for his dancing ability, he was a half second or two behind on several of the synchronized moves; sometimes, too, he turned in the wrong direction, but he got it. That boy can dance!<\/p>\n

Let me briefly share that Josh didn\u2019t make it. I have great respect for the director, so please, no sighs; we had a great week! Let me also share, though, what I learned\u2026<\/p>\n

I was first reminded of that perspective I believe God desires us to have \u2014 to celebrate who each of our kids are, how God uniquely wires them, and to encourage them to grow.
\nSecond, I learned that we often put too much emphasis on the end results; the process \u2014 and the growth<\/em> in that process \u2014 is without a doubt,\u00a0beautiful.<\/em> <\/strong><\/p>\n

And lastly, I was struck\u00a0most by Josh\u2019s own words \u2014 words that are true. Loudly and proudly, with all others sitting and listening, my sweet son, Josh, sang the chorus from \u201cJust the Way You Are\u201d by Bruno Mars…<\/p>\n

“When I see your face<\/em>
\nThere\u2019s not a thing that I would change<\/em>
\nBecause you\u2019re amazing<\/em>
\nJust the way you are.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Amazing. Smiling. Just the way he is.\u00a0Again, it is he who teaches me.<\/p>\n

With great joy\u2026
\nAR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When my youngest son was born, we were greeted by all the plethora of standard congratulatory salutations. But there\u2019s something when a child is born with a disability that threatens to damper what should be none other than a celebration\u2026 \u201cYes, I\u2019m humbled and thrilled at the birth of my child and God\u2019s incredible creation … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “amazing”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5225","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-daily-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5225","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5225"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5225\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5234,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5225\/revisions\/5234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5225"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5225"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5225"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}