My only son and oldest child, Jon Mark, has begun the 7th grade which means a couple of significant events have already taken place:
1) He and his sister Emma went to their first Student Gathering (a.k.a. Youth Meeting) at the church last week.
2) He has his first football practice today after school.
Why are these two important in a young man's life? They are steps, processes, you know ... movement toward manhood. The student gathering means he gets to FINALLY rub shoulders, play foosball, eat pizza, get sweaty with zany games, and learn what it means to be a dedicated follower of Christ with a bunch of older dudes and gals. The friend part is cool and not discussed (boys and their friendships just happen; they are not planned nor analyzed). The gal part of Junior High life is totally chaotic and beautiful.
When you see a number of Junior High boys & girls in one room, there is this mass bulk of energy that appears confused, charged, and messy - appearances are sometimes accurate.
The chaos is a beautiful thing because it is a necessary and natural flow of human interaction; with a push of God's-ordained drive to be attracted to that opposite being sitting across the room.
The football team is another decision he has made on his own to be involved in athletics and to not be afraid of hard contact with the opposition, in order to make a good play and help his team/school win.
I am so proud of his growth academically, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.
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