Sportmanship learned from an 11 Year old

On February 11th there was a tumbling competition that our gym hosted. I had the honor of announcing the awards to all of the athletes. The hardest part of my day was pronouncing the names of each individual athlete correctly. There were all ages of competitors from 3 to18. There was a group of 11 year old girls that stood out to me. I started announcing their awards and they were all jumping and laughing and saying good job to each other. One of the athletes in the group cheered and congratulated everyone, and rallied the whole group to be excited for each other. This little girl received a 2nd place ribbon. When her friend received a 1st place ribbon, she was beyond excited for her. When the athletes saluted I had the audience give an extra round of applause for this group with amazing sportsmanship. When they walked off of the podium, the little girl hugged the 1st place winner. I told her she was my favorite athlete. I talked about her a few times during the day and later that night. Our coach found this picture of her, posted on her gyms Facebook site, and asked me if this was the girl. I was so excited that it was the right person. I found her Mom on Instagram and sent her a message to let her know that she was raising an amazing young lady. I keep thinking about how she was happy for others. What a great example she was to so many that day. 

 We've heard the call to Love One Another a million times already, but somehow we still need that reminder everyday. Life isn't easy for anyone, there are countless ways it can knock a person down. If we lift one another back up, we can make this world a kinder, better place. Today we may be the one who is standing strong and doing the heavy lifting. Tomorrow, we may be the one who needs the lift. I am thankful for the example of an 11 year old girl that was beyond excited for everyone. I am thankful I was able to witness her love for everyone. I hope we can all be a little more like her and lift each other up. Be happy for other people because it's true that we rise by lifting others.