School wrestling has finally come to an end. It has been weeks of 2 hour practices everyday.  Then there are the meets.  You sit for a couple hours waiting for a match that can last anywhere from 15 seconds to 4 1/2 minutes. It can be intense. I sit in the stands reading a magazine, knitting, doing a devotional, or talking with the boys. Then for that quick few seconds or minutes I'm on the edge of the mat with my camera in hand. I view it through the lens. It helps to distance me from the action. I watch for moments of intense emotion in the faces. I look at the muscles and tendons that bulge as they try to take each other down. It is absolutely amazing. I can't watch as a mother but I can as a photographer. It's hard as a mom to watch another boy try to shove your child's face into the mat, pull on their arm as they struggle, or pick them up and drop them onto the mat trying to pin them.

As a mom, all my instincts scream to protect.  As a cheerleader my instincts are to cheer, encourage and shout. As a photographer I wait for the action to unfold and silently pray in my heart. At the end of each match whether it has been 15 seconds or 4 1/2 grueling minutes of placing points on the board, testing strength, working as hard as possible I always tell him good job. It's something I can't do and am amazed that he likes it.  I ask each time, do you still like it?
He always emphatically answers "Yes."

The last meet of the season was an all school meet and he placed 3rd overall! He won two matches by points for the whole season which is better than last year. He had to wrestle his teammate for the last match to determine who placed third and fourth.