Let the games begin

Sports Day at St. Gabriel's is a real affair. The Infants' Department, which comprises the younger classes, aged 4-7 years at St. Gabriel's School, held their Sports Day last Friday on a sunny, soon to be devastatingly scorching morning, on the campus of the school.  The children had been practicing for weeks for a few events--the sack race, balancing (a beanbag on a paddle), a running race, and a hula hoop jumping for the wee ones and jumprope running for the "older" kids.  The day is an opportunity for the kids to show their parents, families, and friends their physical prowess and be celebrated for their achievements.  There was a food canteen with fishcakes, rotis, doubles, pizza, sodas, chips, and other goodies run by the school's PTA, as fascist an operation as any in the States.  At every event in Barbados one can find fishcakes and rotis, in the same way that one can find hamburgers and hot dogs in the States.  We'd brought our visiting friends along, so it was nice for them to experience a Bajan/West Indian school event, so like the States and also quite different.


Lily loves physical activity, but her competitive streak runs mostly in the passive-aggressive vein.  She does not defend herself outright and more enjoys games where one is able to run around and be crazy but no one wins or loses.  (I am not sure from where she gets this as Didier and I will compete with anyone for anything it seems.  Didier is sure he is racing some Grand Prix at every trip in the car and I will try anything to see if I am good at it and the only way to tell is to beat someone at it.  I know, petty as hell, but at least I speak the truth.)  All that said, during the trials, Lily was winning quite a lot of heats.  I did not hear this from Lily as she truly is unphased by it, but her teacher and some of her classmates told me that she is quite a little athlete and wins all the races. 

On that day, it was not meant to be for Lily in all races, but as every child was rewarded just for participating, first with a green ribbon if they did not place and finally with a beautiful medal in a closing ceremony that ended with both fathers' and mothers' races, everyone felt like a winner.  The day went from 8:30 am until promptly at 12 noon.  I wondered at first, how and why with all those children were we really going to finish at noon and then the sun began to turn and reduced shadows and shade to a memory.  It was the heat that would end this day and a burning hot sun overhead shining laser beams down on our heads. 

Both Didier and I participated in the parents' races to show Lily that even though we did not think we would win, we still enjoyed participating in sport.  And with parents ten to twenty years younger than us, we certainly did not win.  She was so happy to see us laughing and smiling and running.  With Virginie spending the morning at Blossoms Nursery School, she had us all to herself.  She was proud.  And so were we.

(c)  Copyright 2011.  City Mom in the Jungle.