3 lil groms

I like the way these words fall together,
Like a good session, just falls into place,
Nothing expected, nothing wanted,
But there it is, like a smile breaking across my face,
Don’t know where it comes from or where it goes,
Living in the moment, living in the flow.
Rolled to the park with my oldest boy,
Hotter than I imagined, pushing ninety degrees,
Skate park was nearly empty, just a coupla groms,
Assorted fruit-booters as well, seemed kinda green,
They kept falling every time they hit the pyramid,
So we just started carving, just me and the kid.
Lines were wide open, almost too much to choose,
No one was hogging this section or that,
Rolled where we wanted, did as we wanted,
Almost too much freedom, ran out of ideas,
So Zed and I tried a couple of new lines,
Instead of doing the same thing like every other time.
Twenty-plus feet to push, gain massive speed,
Hit the mini-bank, then immediately down the other,
I’m tucked so low, knees to chest, butt to the floor,
Roll over the flat, hit the corner high, six inches from the lip,
Back down again, with a full head of steam, ready to rip.
Up and down the twinkie, seemed to just graze the concrete,
Right into the tranny, rode it and kickturned just below coping,
A new door just opened right before our eyes,
Haven’t seen anyone do that one yet,
So now Zed and I have something else to do,
Gotta keep it fresh and do something new.
Zed skated the egg bowl and half-bowl,
Got carves down both ways on both walls,
He’s got carves down on a coupla other corners,
Did some mini-kickturns, needs to go all the way,
And I was able to throw in a revert to fakie,
Rode up the bank and back down again, not at all shaky.
We both have been progressing, learning as we go,
So hard to believe he couldn’t even roll down a bank,
Just a year ago, but now he’s rolling with me,
Trying to get faster and higher on his carves,
Gotta get him comfortable being up on the wall,
Kickturns and fakies, but he’s afraid he’s gonna fall.
Can’t quite blame him, still got my own fears,
Dropping-in is spotty at best, not at all mastered yet,
I can do it from here, but not from there,
Five feet is alright, but nothing higher,
And still can’t drop into the egg bowl,
Carving that thing remains my number one goal.
When it’s all said and done, we’re sitting on our duffs,
Both holding our boards, watching a crew dropping-in,
Times like those can’t be bought or sold,
Talking about life, talking about anything,
Sharing time and my self with my oldest son,
Teaching, listening, learning and having fun.
Skating is so much more than just a game,
It has given me a new lease on this life,
Reminded me of what’s most important of all,
It has given me a chance to hang with my tykes,
And dad isn’t sitting on the sidelines, but right in the mix,
Skating and carving and getting his cardio fix.
My kids watching me struggle and learn,
And trying to tackle something and slowly improve,
Has given them something solid and concrete,
Teaching by example, learning right beside them,
Has built trust and has strengthened our bonds,
And I just thank God for my three little groms.