I don't have a personal story about how wrestling has made me a better person. I'll admit that I'm incredibly inspired by the stories I've read, and I'm thrilled to be a small part of a community that has stepped up to the call to put this sport back into the Olympics. But I'm just a wrestling mom.
I never expected to be a wrestling mom--in fact, the idea was a little out of my comfort zone-- okay, a lot outside of it. My son was in 7th grade when his football coach goaded him into giving it a try. My son was a heavyweight, overly self-conscious of his body and terribly worried about wearing a singlet. But because he loved and wanted to please his coach, he agreed. And the rest, as they say, is history.
He loved the sport from his very first practice. Yes, he was behind the curve in our area -- very few novices were in the 7th grade, and none were his weight class. I had to drive him to another city at least once each week just to give him mat time with a practice partner.
His first season was pitiful. He spent a lot, and I mean a lot, of time on his back. We joked that he knew the ceiling color of every gym in the area. But a season of losing at a sport he already enjoyed just made him more determined.
This past season was his second year. He was on the mat 6 days a week most weeks. Two nights he practiced with his club, and two afternoons he walked to practice with another club after school--often in the snow because I work and could not drive him. He entered both novice and open tournaments each weekend with the goal of getting better. It worked.
Six days a week is hard. He was exhausted most of the time, but he never quit. He leaned up. He lifted weights and bulked up a little. He started to look pretty good in a singlet. His grades got better. And he didn't spend much time on his back. He finished the season with a 30-7 record. He won every novice tournament he entered, and every open wrestler he faced won their weight class in their state tournaments.
I tell this story not to brag on my son -- although admittedly it's a nice bonus. I tell the story for two reasons: first, I watched him change before my eyes -- his work ethic, his goals, his strength, his pride, his self-esteem, his grades -- all became tremendously better at the hands of wrestling. Second, while I'm just a wrestling mom, I'm committed to the sport.
I never dreamed 16 months ago that I would become so vocal about a sport I doubted. I wasn't crazy about the "outfits." I certainly didn't want my son to be engaged in "violence." I didn't want to spend my weekends in sweaty, stinky gyms. Wow, has that changed. I cannot wait for tournaments, I think singlets are the coolest thing ever, and I don't worry that anyone will harm my son because he'll just take them down-- and the phrase, "Kill him," may have accidentally leaked out of my mouth once or twice during matches.
I am so proud of the wrestling community for banding together for a cause that is important. I wish I had more and bigger forums to advocate because of the difference wrestling has made in the life of our son. I know there are thousands of stories out there just like his. And I know those stories cross boundaries of country, race, religion, socioeconomic status and more. I look forward to the day my son is a grown man and can articulate why he wrestled and the difference it made in his life -- and this sport is giving that same opportunity to millions of kids around the world. How can that be taken away?
This season, we had several occasions to watch a young first-year novice heavyweight--a very big boy. He was defeated in every match at every tournament we had seen. We felt for him. We knew how painful it must have been for him to lose every match. But we began to notice that he was getting better. He was going longer -- he even occasionally made it past the first period. We saw as he tried -- successfully -- new moves. Near the end of the season, he was going 3 rounds with his opponents. Then one weekend, he pinned a kid! The only person more excited for this boy than we were was his dad. His dad had been a 3 time state champ and wrestled at a large university. He knew what it took to win, and he knew the agony of defeat. But he also understood that, once his son got the pin, he was in it! I look forward to seeing the kid next year, and I hope that he, too, can one day tell the story of how wrestling made him feel powerful.
I may be just a wrestling mom, but I am proud to be one.
Robin Brewton
Leawood, KS
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