No Laughing

Vanesa seems to find a lot to giggle about in the boxing gym.  Honestly, I wonder why she and her cousin David are in the teen class.  David only does a half-hour and runs off to a competitive swimming class.  Allegedly, his dad doesn't want David to compete in any boxing shows.  Vanessa doesn't want to fight, but not because of any parental restrictions.  I'm irritated because she doesn't listen to instructions, and she complains about being tired.  "I'm 57 years old, and I feel tired many times, but I show up and be present," I told her.  Vanessa is 13-years-old.

"What's so funny?  Do you see me laughing?" I asked her yesterday.  I corrected her about her punches and she half-listened to what I said.  Several times, I asked her to move on to the next exercise on the list and she just stood there.  I don't bother to hide my sarcasm most of the time when talking to her.

Ivan, another cousin of David and Vanesa's, has seemed to disappear from the youth class.  Now their family is considering enrolling yet another kid in the class.  Thrilled, I ain't, based on what I've seen from the other kids.  It would be nice to know during the registration process that kids don't want to compete.  Usually, I don't find out until the first day of a new session or later.  It's still not a good look for me or the boxing program not to have any kids who don't want to go to the boxing shows.

Doneisha and Tony, whom I hadn't seen in months, stopped by the field house.  Doneisha asked me to fill out a recommendation form for Tony.  She's sending him to a new high school.  Doneisha talked about signing up for the boxing program again, but it sounds like she has a lot going on at the moment.  Most adults do, which is why to an extent, I don't get very concerned when they register and don't attend class regularly.  There's always something like having to work late or babysitting issues.  That is one of the reasons why I don't demand that adults attend the class every day.

However, I feel like I'm wasting time where most of the kids are concerned.  If there's no interest and motivation, I'd rather that some kids drop out of the class. 

A good update about George, the coach at Garfield Park.  He's out of the hospital.  No heart attack nor mini-stroke.  But George has said the experience gave him a new perspective on life.  The plan is to cut down on the long hours George had been putting in at his gym.