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The New West Baby

Reaching for Gold: Beijing or Bend?

By Kelley Moen, 8-14-08

What does Bend, Oregon have in common with Beijing during the 2008 Summer Olympics?

Well, it’s certainly not the air quality or population, as 225 times more people live in the Chinese city and its accompanying smoggy horizon, a polar opposite to that of Oregon’s pristine high desert air.  But, in a stretch this author is willing to make, both Bend and Beijing currently offer the grand challenge of a life-changing experience. 

That experience in Beijing, of course, is the limited opportunity for a few thousand athletes to compete at world-class level, to represent one of 204 countries and to, as all these top athletes from around the globe simply emanate, “Go for the gold!”

A life-changing experience!

And what is the life-changing experience, although on a more “domestic” scale, happening this very moment in Bend, Oregon, dear reader?

I’m not talking world competitive gymnastics atop the Old Mill or beach volleyball on the banks of the Deschutes River- I am talking motherhood!

What an opportunity!  What a chance to give and to love and to simply go for the personal gold of being a good parent! 

I am not trying to glorify my own ability as a mother.  I am a novice.  And, of course, there is no event in the Olympics titled “Motherhood.” If there was such, and imagine the competition if you will, how could we even attempt to judge a 10.0?  Impossible.

All I am saying is that this life-long challenge, the one we call parenting, could arguably be one of the greatest of life’s experiences. And unlike receiving a gold medal on the podium at the Olympic Games, the possibility of winning a reciprocal love and relationship with your own child is a medal that would hopefully last forever, continue to change and be re-awarded each day for a lifetime.

In between the marathon feeding sessions, diaper changes, playtime and neighborhood strolls with my beautiful newborn son this week, I’ve caught glimpses the incredible athletes competing in Beijing. (Yes, I gave in and pulled out our only TV from the depths of the closet for these next couple weeks of Olympic entertainment.  Don’t tell anyone from TV-Free America , please.)

These athletes are inspirational.  They embody rock-solid physical form.  Strength.  Power.  Determination.  Flexibility and finesse.  Hours of practice.  These Olympians are facing the opportunity of a lifetime and a challenging pressure that parallels it, no doubt.

If you asked me a year ago about these athletes, I may nave been equally impressed with all of them.  While each sport requires unique talents, they have a common denominator:  The gymnast needs balance, flexibility and strength.  The swimmer needs endurance and form.  The basketball and volleyball players need speed, coordination and teamwork skills.  Yet they hold the same determination to succeed.  They all have their eye on the gold.

However, this year after having a son and becoming a parent, I am not equally impressed with these incredible athletes.  One specific athlete tops my list, blows me away, drops my jaw and wins my ultimate admiration.  That individual is not only an Olympic athlete and gold medalist.  That athlete is also a mom.

U.S. Olympic swimmer, Dara Torres, is 41 and has competed in five Olympic games, beginning when she was 17 years old in the 1984 games.  That rocks!  She’s the oldest athlete to qualify for the Olympics, she’s competed in the 1984, 1988, 1992 and 2000 games, and, to top it off, she is a mother!  Now in her fifth Summer Olympics, this mom is absolutely my hero.

In an interview for NBC, Torres explained that being a mother and an Olympic athlete requires a disciplined strife toward balance.  Since her daughter was born in 2006, she’s needed to balance her personal athletic goals with the demands of being a parent.  In fact, when pregnant with her daughter Tessa, Torres swam until the day she gave birth and then competed in a swim meet just three weeks postpartum!

Phew!  I can only imagine the dedication it would take to train for the Olympics while caring for a child.  Here in Bend, there are great programs aimed at getting new moms back into shape and staying fit with little ones.  Torres might be glad to know that this mom tries her hardest to get out the door for exercise as often as possible, although I admit last week’s mud still cakes the soles of my running shoes and my swim suit hasn’t been wet in more than a month.  I still try, really I do.

No, I say not all Olympic athletes are created equal.  The mother-athlete who is swimming for the U.S. in Beijing, the Wonder Woman who can do it all, she deserves that gold medal. 

I’ll continue to catch glimpses of these 2008 games here in Bend, watching my hero compete in the Water Cube as I feed and rock and change my child.  I can’t help but think about the sought-after gold.  In my opinion, I’ve already got it.  This baby’s happy, bubbling giggle, his tiny but strong grip on my thumb and his bright starry-blue eyes that gaze lovingly up at mommy- all that is medal enough for me.

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