Blending in with the wall
Blending in with the wall
Walking slowly across the gym I let my teammates all go ahead
I know I’ll the hear the question, a moment I always dread
“Do you have your giants yet?” I know she’s just trying to be nice
I lower my head and mumble “no”, so then she starts to give advice
When we get over to bars I’m trying to look small
Trying somehow to hide, to blend in with the wall
The coach barks instructions,it’s the same as last night
He’s looking right at me, guess I’m in for a fight
“Warm up your skills, then show me your routine”
“You can move on to the pit, if everything is clean”
The coach watches closely, the girls all get in line
As I walk behind the chalk pail, his eyes lock onto mine
“Your teammates are all on bars, where are your grips?”
“Well I’m missing a wristband, and I have a few rips”
“My shoulders are sore, and my arms feel like lead”
“Can I skip bars tonight, and do conditioning instead?”
He seemed a little angry, raised an eyebrow and his voice
“Since your kip has bent arms, skipping bars is a bad choice”
“Your free-hip is too low, and your knees are not tight”
“With all that in mind, you should work bars all night!”
I wanted to run and hide, why was he being so mean?
Raising his voice in front of everyone, making a scene
I stared but couldn’t speak, I didn’t know what to say
It’s so painful inside me, I’ve never behaved this way
I’m afraid of learning giant swings and no matter how hard I try
I’m afraid to even say I’m afraid, because I know I’ll start to cry
So I sat down right where I was standing and lowered my head between my
knees
I took a deep breath, looked up and said “Is there some way you can help
me please?”
He sensed that I was desperate and walked over to offer a hand
Pulled me up with a tug and smiled “Do you really need a wristband?”
“I NEED GIANTS” I blurted out, saying the words I held in for so long
“I’m afraid of ripping off the bar, and I’m afraid of doing it wrong”
“I understand you so please listen closely, there’s a few things for you
to think about”
“Your amazingly strong and very determined, you will make giants there is
no doubt”
“So close your eyes and clear your mind, now picture yourself up over the
pit”
“You are really confident and your grips feel just right, in you there is
no quit”
“You underswing and kip, your arms and legs staying tight”
“Keeping your shoulders forward, casting with all your might”
“As you start coming down, you tighten into a perfect hollow”
“Holding it as long as you can, for the tap swing to follow”
“Near the
bottom of your swing you relax a bit and let a little arch slip in”
“Then drive your legs and hips to the ceiling, back to a hollow body
position”
“The strong tap “pops” you over the bar, as you keep pushing away
“Then back into hollow and tap up for a perfectly stuck flyaway”
“Did you see yourself do it?” he asked “Yes I saw it, it was amazing”
“I can’t wait to work on the timing, can I warm up my swing?”
“Well there’s something more that I want you to know”
“It’s a little hard to explain, but it may help you when you go”
“To make it over the bar you have to want it really bad
“You have to grit your teeth, and even get a little mad”
“You have to show your Gurrrr, decide it’s time to make this skill”
“Get yourself over the bar, before…. your over the hill”
I knew what he meant and I knew that he was right
I needed a different attitude in order to win this fight
At every practice I worked real hard on the pit bar
I wasn’t ever going to give up, I had come way too far
Not too long after I asked for help, I had giants on my mind all day long
Training that night felt a little different, like my mind was extra strong
And as I was putting on my grips and chalking up near the pit
I think I heard a voice tell me…“tonight’s the night to go for it”
I hopped up onto the bar, and cast almost to handstand
I hollowed down and pushed away, I felt in total command
I arched at the bottom then drove my legs for the ceiling
As I was coming up over the bar I knew I had it, WHAT A GREAT FEELING
As I stuck my flyaway onto the mat in the pit
I heard thunderous clapping as if lightning had just hit
Frozen in the moment, I just stared down at my feet
This skill took so long, but now it feels oh so sweet
There was a lesson for me in all this, that at first I could not see
Gymnastics takes courage and hard work, new skills do not come free
In the beginning learning giants was not easy, I have to admit
But when you win this battle I promise you, it’s more than worth it.
Thank you (Charlie Amerosa)