When a Child Changes You
As parents, we influence our children from the moment they are born. But oftentimes the tables turn and our kids affect us in meaningful, yet unexpected ways.
This week I was reminded of how my sons influenced the direction of my writing career in a surprising way. During an interview for a NASCAR blog this week, the host asked how I got interested in racing. I shared this story:
Like many preschoolers, my boys loved toy Matchbox® cars, especially ones with NASCAR paint schemes. Our kitchen floor and living room rug morphed into race tracks as the boys scooted around on hands and knees driving the little cars. Vroom, vroom!
When the boys discovered pictures of stock cars, they glued them onto corrugated cardboard and cut them out, creating sturdy “racecars.” They drew and colored their own original cars, too, writing sponsor names on the hoods. The boys spent hours racing the cars down the hallway carpeting, giving each car a single shove. The car that slid the farthest distance before stopping was the winner.
Soon the boys wanted to see real racecars, so we started watching NASCAR races on television. And do you know what happened? The boys’ mom got hooked on racing. Yep. I started watching racing as a way to bond with my sons, but became so passionate that I began writing about the sport.
My devotional book for female race fans released this year: Race Fans’ Devotions to Go. This little book exists because my little boys passed on their love of racecars to me. What a blessing!
If you have children in your life, chances are that one of them has influenced you in a significant way. Like me, you may not realize the full impact until someone prompts you to think about it.
So … how has a child blessed and transformed your life? I’d love to hear your story in the comments.
Blessings,
In Race Fans’ Devotions to Go, Beth shares observations about drivers and racing as well as stories about her experiences at the track. Each of the 31 devotions illustrates the similarities between motorsports and life and ends with a “pit stop” – an idea to make your life more fulfilling.