Is it uncool to show people that you are working hard?

I like watching people who are working hard.

I think the sight of someone working hard, even if they are clumsy, is incredibly cool.

Even if they aren't a famous athlete,

(Of course, famous athletes are too!!)

Even if it's someone close to me,

Even if it's a small child,

People who are making an effort and working hard,

are so cool.

When my son was in elementary school,

he learned how to play softball, but

even looking at it with parental bias,

he was not

good at all.

And that was,

from first grade

to sixth grade,

for six years.

Despite his best efforts,

compared to kids who joined later,

or kids in lower grades,

my son can't produce results.

Making the starting lineup is a pipe dream.

Because he's a sixth grader,

out of the coach's kindness,

(out of pity),

even when he's put in a game,

he strikes out or makes errors,

and even his teammates

give him dirty looks.

But, he looked so cool.

(👆Proud parent)

He has never once

skipped practice.

He practices his swings in front of the house,

and runs in the nearby park.

Playing catch with his dad.

Even outside of practice,

on his own,

he was working so hard.

To me,

he looked even cooler

than Ichiro (laughs).

Conversely, with his other hobby, piano,

he didn't practice at all,

and with only one lesson a week,

my son kept getting better and better at playing.

Apparently he memorizes a piece after hearing it once,

and his piano teacher would say,

'I really want him to take piano seriously...'

'I'm worried about him jamming his fingers, so if possible, I'd like him to quit softball.'

That's what she would say,

and at the recital, he was even better than his older sister.

Even playing a difficult piece.

At the joint rehearsal before the recital,

(After a softball game)

because he wouldn't make it in time

if he went home first,

he went straight to the venue,

and the elementary school boy

with a buzz cut

in a mud-stained uniform

played quite well,

so apparently he even had some fan moms.

(A story I heard from his piano teacher)

If you only look at the results,

Softball = bad,

Piano = (pretty) good,

but,

my son when he's playing softball is super cool!

I, too, at the very least,

to my husband and children,

Mom, you're so cool!

I need to make enough of an effort to be told that,

I really do~