A-Z Challenge: O, P, & Q Catch Up #SpankA2Z

Good morning, everyone! I'm catching up once again. In today's post I will be covering O, P, & Q! For the letter O I guest blogged on the Corbin's Bend blog talking about the famous spanking scene in Outlander. I talked about all the ways they got it just right and how it differed from the book. I also listed several other spanking scenes that appeared throughout the series. Take a minute to go visit the post. It's one of my favorites! You can read it HERE.

For letter P I have chosen the word proud because I am one proud mama. My 18 year old son just graduated high school. For many it's a right of passage. The same is true for my son, but it's also a remarkable accomplishment.

During his sophomore year and again in his junior year he suffered from serious head injuries. These injuries took him out of his beloved sport, soccer. They also took him out of life for a good while. I don't know if any of you have ever suffered from a severe concussion, but you can't function at all. Lights, sounds, and movement are excruciating. So forget studying, watching tv, or going out with friends.

Needless to say he missed most of second semester sophomore year. Something that is hard to take for a popular athlete and probably anyone else as well. He got his grove back junior year and played for the new school I transferred him to. Things were looking up when a second head injury took him out. This time it was even worse and I had to move him home to school. This was one of the most tumultuous periods of our lives. I am proud to say with intensive help with his neurologist, the online groups that became family (who were more versed in head injury than the doctors,) and his pure will by second semester senior year he was back in school, caught up, found himself again, and graduated with his class.

In addition to this he was accepted at a prestigious classical arts college on a Soccer scholarship. It was a miracle and a victory so sweet we are still savoring it. All of the is leads to another P word...perseverance. I can't tell you how many times he (and we all) wanted to give up. It would be so easy to throw in the towel, falling into despair. In the end his determined strength and perseverance carried him through to accomplish not only graduation, but his dreams as well.

I learned that a Mother's perseverance can pay off in advocating and cheer-leading her child and what an example it is to go for the gold and go for your dreams no matter what the obstacles appear to be. It has taught me a lot about my own life. True strength lies within. It is a quiet strength that keeps you going no matter what...providing the grit you need to pull through even when it seems that everything is against you. I have learned that life can surprise you. Even at your darkest hour the dawn is only a small amount of time away. All we need to do is use that quiet strength & persevere through until dawn finally arrives....usually just when it seems it will never come.