Jay, who has lived in the Waukesha area for nearly 20 years, is an active volunteer who serves on numerous local boards and committees. He’s married to Colleen with three kids having gone through the Waukesha schools. He is the VP of a local distribution company and currently serves on several area Boards.
The golf driving range could be considered a microcosm of parenting. We bring our kids into our lives at the tee boxes with short clubs and big dreams. Parents then offering advice and support as the young learn to “take their swings”. Over years, the young grow up and the advice from behind the tee mats diminishes…
My son Jordan and I went to the "driving range” today. Jordan has evolved to become a solid mid to upper 70’s golfer. Watching him go through his drills, I was taken back to the Jordan of old. The Jordan who could, at 3-4 years old, hit a plastic ball with a plastic club with a solid, fluid motion. There were early memories of taking him to the range and offering reinforcement of “a straight-back takeaway and maintaining an even tempo swing”. No matter the quality of shot, we always found something positive to share and reflect on later.
Every father who has coached his son knows the uniquely warm feeling when they execute a great shot which is immediately followed by their backward glance of pride - and their hope you saw it. They paused and waited for those parental words of support and acknowledgement which were as important to them as the thrill of a well-driven ball. Interestingly, as my son gets older, I now recognize how much his desire for approval meant to me back then. His youth prevented his sensing my growing pride in him which was deeply rooted in marveling at his progress. Then again, it is possible he intuitively knew his progress and successes as a golfer were shared, quietly, by me.
Watching him now hit at age 20, he still occasionally turns back, only now it’s with satisfaction and a “Hey Dad – pretty nice, huh?” look. And while the shots are now better (some fairly awesome), and much longer, he might not be looking for as much advice from “behind the mat” these days. But it is obvious that “little boy” who looks back for my stamp of approval is still very much alive and well.
What a great Father’s Day gift!
