I went to the track the other day and as I made my way around for about the 10th time, I saw a woman on the track and a man sitting in the third and fourth lane (the middle) of the track.  I thought WTF!?!?

Occasionally, there are parents with children on the track (which I find high annoying considering all of the beautiful parks around the area) but the children are normally toddlers. Then I thought maybe something happened (possibly an injury of some sort). But as I got closer I could hear the woman trying to reason with the man and it was then that I saw that the man was actually an adult-sized teenager with special needs. I was determined not to stare as I moved to the fifth lane and kept making my way around the track. I didn’t want to stare because I didn’t want to make the situation any more awkward for the mother. I kept moving around the track and at some point, I saw the teenager seated on the bleachers beside the track and it looked like he was watching videos on his phone and at some point I saw the mom jogging past me on the track with her purse bouncing off of her hip as she ran. She made her way around the track several times, jogging at a steady pace and each time she reached the bleachers she slowed down to check on her son. What was so amazing to me was her resolve and determination to get her workout in – no matter what.

I also thought about what her days must be like (and who knows her circumstances – she may have a lot of help or be doing everything on her own) but whatever the case, having a child with special needs cannot be easy. At one point when she passed me on the track, we caught each other’s eye and we said polite hellos. Her hello was warm and I could feel her smile beneath her mask. I wanted to tell her that I so admired her grit and her joy. But that would have been awkward. Instead, I cheered her on silently, said a quiet prayer for her continued strength and hoped that some of her superpower rubbed off on me.