Today my mom surprised me. She again asked till when I'll be going for trainings, and I said I'll be attending regularly till end July, why? Unexpectedly, she said that she doesn't like me going for trainings. Each training I attend is a risk she has to take. Because we're young and naive, we assume that we will wake up tomorrow, that there is a tomorrow. And because I've been ok every time I fell, I assume that I'll always be ok. She knows that the percentage of serious accidents happening is quite low, but it's not non-existent, and as she reads about accidents here and there, she worries that one day, I'll be one of those poor people in a wheelchair because I fell in an awkward position. She said that if I end up in such a state, all my friends will be gone, and the only ones left pushing me about will be my family.
As she said all those, I realised that there is some truth in those words, in that I really never seriously considered that things will not always be ok. Or that she worries about me incessantly. She understands all too well that I'm the pampered xiao jie at home who doesn't think too much about the uglier side of life, or consider the danger in all the things I do. Sports can be dangerous, but there are varying levels of danger. My mom was ok with me playing table tennis. After all, what's more likely to happen is that I get a baluku from getting whacked hard by a ball, or a bat, or ramming myself into the table. At worst, if I smash awkwardly into the corner of the table I may break a bone, but nothing life threatening. Cheerleading is a totally different matter. I always forget the danger involved.
I feel a bit guilty making my mom worry. I don't want to saddle her with another burden should anything happen. I figured that having children alone is quite a financial burden, and there's no reason I should take such risks for my own short-term happiness, at the expense of my parents' long-term worry/unhappiness. It makes me rethink my considerations of continuing cheerleading in Japan.
But I feel grateful to my mom for not forcing me to stop cheerleading immediately after I handed over, or anything like that, simply because she knows I enjoy it, and I'm eager to learn more new stuff (although she wishes that we aren't getting coached by ACES, and she doesn't want me to learn anything new that potentially increases the danger). And yes, I really like cheerleading. So here is some pictorial evidence of my love affair with cheerleading:

gladiator!

various stunts on harry potty day

we get to meet potty fanatics (hur hur, pun intended)

and cheerleading can be good, clean, safe fun
These days we've started to learn from ACES, and are beginning to stunt outside of performances and trainings. It's a wonderful feeling, being able to do it without mats, with minimal spotters, and maximal spectators. I wonder when I'll have enough of the thrill of cheerleading.
Labels: cheerleading, musings, pics