It's not often you get to see your kids true spirit, unencumbered by childhood...this was one of those moments.
...We showed up Saturday morning to an overcrowded gym with six wrestling mats crammed into it. Kids were warming up. Referees were organizing their scoring tables. We went straight to the competition brackets.
Blair's division had nineteen 10 and 11 year old wrestlers. It was the largest bracket he's ever competed in...and every kid was ready to test their mettle and win a coveted state wrestling title.
Most tournaments are uneventful Saturday mornings, with parents sharing simple pleasantries over coffee. Kids get to be kids and roll around with no real pressure. This was vastly different...
Last year, Blair lost his first two matches. Only his first season, I wanted him to compete so he would learn one thing: How to fight when you're losing.
Life's all about losing. It's only the ones who can fight while being pummeled that make it out alive.
That's why people die obese and hooked on meds...they refuse to fight when they're being held down and folded up by better opponents.
Everyone can fight when they're on top. I only know a handful who can do it when the odds are stacked against them.
Blair's one of them.
His first three matches were against kids who beat him last year. That didn't matter. A silent assassin, missing his target of winning never crossed his mind. Blair busted through them all the way to the semi-finals!
Once in the semi's, all the kids changed into men. It took everything they had and more to make it to the end.
Tears of pain flowed from both grapplers in the third period.
Blair pulled the win 10-9.
I didn't know how to tell Blair he had more fight in him...Late into the evening, most of the crowd had left. The mats were filthy. All the food and even the water was GONE. The bathrooms were literally closed down due to overcrowded conditions making them filthy...there was only wrestling.
And there's always fight left in the person who refuses to accept the status quo of winning and losing...there's only performing.
You perform, you never lose. And with that, I felt like I was sending Blair to hell and hoping he could crawl back on his own.
It's the same in living young...you're either doing what it takes to make it happen or you're sabotaging yourself.
In life and in wrestling, you get what you put in. And nobody can help you fight your battles...
In the finals, Blair performed at his absolute best...Still, he got pinned. But there was more fighting for 2nd and 3rd.
("I swear it upon Zeus an outstanding runner cannot be the equal of an average wrestler.” - Socrates)
In his final match of the night, he took another loss in the most grueling match I've ever seen, 10 to 6. In the end, Blair walked away with a hard-won 3rd place in the toughest tournament of the year.
Grandma and grandpa were mat side and enjoyed every moment. A title he gets to be proud of until next year!
It was inspiring. And I no longer have to wonder if Blair will let life beat him down when the odds are stacked against him. Goliath beware. Blair will always fight even when losing...
Meanwhile, obesity, diabetes, cancer, heart disease and so many other illness' continue to bury those who refuse to fight. For all the others, there's a wildly effective blueprint for getting off meds and regaining your health. It's all
Always be fighting,
The People's Chemist
P.S. The picture shows Blair after his loss in the finals. His little brother asked him, "Do you need a hug to feel better Blair?" He had to bounce back in 5 minutes to compete for 2nd...
P.P.S. Blair's winning formula for recovery and endurance is Whey Advanced (www.getwheyadvanced.com) with either raw milk or purified water. He keeps his immune system strong with Immune FX (www.getimmunefx.com). His energy drink is pre-made yerba mate sweetened with raw honey.
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