It was a beautiful morning with soft smack of sun rays on our faces. We gathered at a neighbourhood park early this morning with an important mission – Brendan’s first 1.6km run and test. A test of his endurance and stamina.

Although the morning ended up with a long wait for the rest of Brendan’s classmates to meet us at the Park, it ended with a sincere apology from me to his teacher-in-charge and classmates because a misunderstanding has arisen and they were all waiting for Brendan in school in vain while we were waiting patiently at the Park.

Faces of anxious parents were cited under the trees, shelter and by the side of the track. All were gathered at the Park obviously with one common objective – that is to encourage their kids. As we understand there are also parents who have not appeared to give their children the greatest support.

Making my special appearances at my boys’ special events in school like Sports Day, competitions have become a definite routine in my life. If Papa Ed is back at home, I ensure that he joins in too. My objective is not to make sure that my sons are the best in class or must excel (of course if they do, it is a bonus and that will put a great smile on my face for the rest of the days) but the important message is that we parents are there to give them the special motivation/support, we can relate with the boys when they share with us the events and b einvove with their important activities so that we can give them the greatest tips and share ideas on how they can improve themselves.

Noting that there is no restriction on parents running along, I put on my sports gear and shoes and tagged along on the track. Just that they ran and I jogged. It was a nice view anyway as Papa Ed and I tagged along and took snapshots of the scenic view by the Park (our common interests now).

A very serene and ideal spot for jogging

Before we knew it, Brendan was already reaching the ending point. We are not sure of his score at this moment but he has definitely done a good job and complete the race in steady manner. After all the message is not that he must win the race but have the determination to complete the race and pass it.

“Hip Hip Hurray, Brendan!”