My Olympic Obsession

“Mom, I’m going to be in the Olympics someday!”

The innocent words out of an eight year old’s mouth. My eight year old’s mouth. A girl who can imagine herself playing for the Canadian female hockey team someday.

Haven’t we all had that dream once in our lives? I know I did. I thought I’d be swimming for Team Canada in the Olympics someday… but then I decided that a social life and free time was more important than practicing 8 times a week. Quitting swimming is not really something I regret… after all, I can see now that I’m kind of lazy and probably didn’t have the drive to get me where I needed to be anyway. Just ask any of my coaches (and my Mom)!

As I sit here (I told you I was lazy) and watch the Olympics day after day, I’m moved by the stories of dedication and commitment. And I’m not just talking about the athletes… I’m talking about the parents and families who have also made the long journey to the Olympics with their athletes. A journey that started a long time ago… providing motivation, drives, money, coffee… you name it!

It’s only a few days into the 2014 Sochi Olympics and I can officially cry in three Olympic languages… English, French and Russian. I’m working on the other languages and expect to be even more multilingual at the end of February!

Talk about talent, commitment and emotion. It’s just all too much… mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters. My heart is on overload!

The stories of triumph, dedication, defeat… ** grabs my heart!** It’s all so  inspiring. The photos of the emotions… the podium presentations… the family reunions after a successful run/skate/performance. It’s gold. And I’m a total sucker for it all.

But I can’t imagine the stress of watching your child/spouse/friend/country mate hurl themselves down a hill, launch into a quadruple jump on two slim blades, defy gravity on a ski hill or take to the ice in a gold medal game. Kudos to the folks who take this amazing journey and inspire a country and the world.

PS – I LOVE the Olympics, despite the fact that my productivity has plummeted, my nose is red and sore, my eyes are puffy… and it’s only just begun. Pray that I make it for the next two weeks.

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