The Unlikely Olympian

I'll grant you it's an unlikely dream for a child who seems destined for the AV-club. But our 6-year-old daughter -- who is frightened by crowds, has yet to master the athletic firsts of skipping, biking and swimming, and who has to be coaxed to continue with anything that she has not immediately mastered within the first five minutes -- wants to be an Olympian.

We're not exactly sure how this dream took root. To date it has not resulted in any feverish need to practice a particular sport, and instead can be seen plainly and simply in the clothes she wears. Have you seen those Olympic clothes sold at The Bay and Zellers? She NEEDS to wear these clothes. And every single day apparently. So that the teachers at her school don't think that I dress her in the same shirt every day, I have managed to acquire a different one of these shirts for each day of the week. She also has an Olympic winter hat, baseball hat and lunch box.

When we have explained that a future Olympian needs a sport, she looked at us with a "yeah, yeah, details," expression. When pressed further, she explained to us that she was going to be an Olympic cross-country skiier. Fair enough. She is quite good at the skiing. For someone with such a bird-like physique, weighing in at only 43lbs, she is very strong. Her father routinely takes her on mountain hikes as long as 8kms and on cross-country ski routes as long as 12kms.

So, perhaps a medal hanging around her neck might actually be a possibility? The experts aren't so optimistic. They say that the biggest indicator is genetics -- that your parents must be exceptional athletes if you have any hope at all. Let's just say that neither of her parents falls into this category.

But you know what? We're still gonna feed this dream.

Last week, a torch from the 1976 Olympics was lit and a running ceremony held at a local school. We wrangled a way to get her a chance to be part of this event. The look on her face as she crossed the finish line was spectacular.

We all need a dream, don't we?