Have you ever tried to take a photo of something that moves faster than a bullet and makes your heart leap with scary excitement?
Sacha (my sixteen-year-old son) asked me if I would take some photos of him on his BMX at the track.
Oh My Gosh, was that NOT easy? First, there were many riders on little bikes who all looked alike, and it didn't help that they were dressed alike in tiny helmets, jeans, and tee shirts. The first few photos I took were of something other than Sacha. What kind of Mom am I who doesn't recognize her son?
Yes, this is my son with a red bike, and OH MY GOSH,
those bare arms.
Is he mad?
What is he twisting his handlebars? If he falls? Why Is he crazy?
That is Sacha on the far end. Easy photo, group shot, not moving, no fear boiling inside me.
Oh no, I don't think this was Sacha. I think he went before this guy. It is too hard to have one eye on who is coming up the hill and using on the jump, and more than that, to have the camera focus another eye on what could fall on me.
Taking photos of lace is a piece of cake, tender and sweet. Taking pictures of BMX riding is rugged, raw, and scary.
Drat, this is not Sacha either… OH MY GOSH, he is not holding on… Free bird!
Later, when talking to Sacha, I asked about this guy doing a trick that I called Free Bird. Sacha beamed as if I mentioned a God-hero. He exclaimed, "Oh, that guy is a pro! He is an amazing rider. He has broken every bone in his body."
All I could utter was, "Lovely."
Why couldn't I have a boy who writes poetry?
INSTEAD OF BMX Ballet on a bike?
The stage. I thought about standing between the dirt hills and taking photos of the bikers going overhead.
Then I re-thought not. I am more into poetry in motion than being flattened by a bike.
Sacha, with his blue underwear showing, landed on the tip of his back tire. He will not be impressed that I missed his mid-air talent. But I am very impressed that he landed, given what happened a split second before this photo was taken.
The trick is knowing that my son is the one with the blue underwear. How nice to know.
Wonder and awe, dreaming… as he gazed upon The PRO in mid-air…
Dreams do come true with practice, and hopefully, no broken bones.
Oh, my boy, wonder…poetry in motion.
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