Sports Day

These last two weeks have been about getting back into a routine.  Grace, Emma and Josh have started some weekly activities and Sarah is getting into a schedule during the day which has been helping her sleep through the night consistently (woohoo!!!) Today we had some more firsts...we went to Tai Po Waterfront Park with some other families.  This park is a wonderful place to ride bikes or walk along the waterfront...but it also has grass to play on, something we miss. So we all brought our soccer balls, track balls, footballs or rugby ball (we were with two S. African families, an Aussie family and a family from New Zealand) and had a marvelous time just running around playing.  Well, the kids and the dads played, and the moms mostly chatted:) It wasn't the nicest day...overcast in the low 60's...but it probably kept the crowds away and it was just so nice to picnic and play.

The other "first" we did today was order McDonald's for delivery.  We got home later than we wanted to, so it seemed like our best option.  I really miss my take-out options...I'm sure there are other options out there that we haven't yet explored, but you have a sense of what we have going when we are picking McDonalds.

This week was also interesting because the elementary school had their Sports Day on Friday.  It was located off campus at a large Sports Grounds (stadium) about 10 minutes from their school.  Josh and Emma were given a color to wear.  Emma was on the red team...easy, we have lots of red.  Josh was on the yellow team...not so easy.  We had one yellow shirt in the whole house...an adult XXL tshirt.  So, thank goodness for neighbors:) The bus dropped them off at the sports grounds and they were there all day.  They got in their team and rotated from station to station, just like what they are used to.  But, unlike the scenario where "everyone wins", the top two finishers in the 60m race from each team were given a gold sticker.  These contestants made it to the finals of their grade, which was run at the end of the day.  When I got there, Josh had a sticker on.  When I asked him what it was for, he had no idea.  Then I found Emma...she had one too and told me what it was for.

What was interesting to me was something said to me from another parent...another "western parent." It was an observation I had already made...I made it in about the first 10 minutes of being there.  Sports Day was a day in which the "western kid" had the chance to shine.  There were a number of children who had never kicked a soccer ball, or jumped in a long jump pit or thrown a Frisbee...and you could tell. But every time I saw some awkwardness, it was difficult not to think that this child probably was a straight A student with a very high IQ. That they spent all their free time on their studies and had no time for anything else.  The parent that made the comment to me wasn't being prejudiced...just making a realistic observation.  Many of these Asian children are highly successful in the classroom...but it is because that is all they do.  They work very hard, but have little time for anything else.  This is not how most "western" families operate...not this family.  While we encourage our children to do their best, we want them to be well rounded.  BUT, we come from and will most likely be going back to the "Land of Opportunity".  The children in Hong Kong are competing for fewer opportunities against millions of others...different mindset, different circumstances. So the competition starts early, and the challenge for us is to not compare, but to continue to do the best we can without making academics an idol.

So how did Sports Day end? Well, Josh ran a good race but did not finish in the medals (oh yes, there were medals) But my Emma tied for third and got a bronze.  They each had a great time, should have worn more sunscreen, but were grateful for a "day off" to play and do things they were comfortable doing. A place that they felt they were on level ground with their classmates...unlike academia in which their peers have been going to school since they were two.  Yes, field day in January...and it was good...different, but good.