Through the Fire - The Refining Process (Part II)

Day 2 of the competition.  I think we were all nervous because we knew how important this competition was to Gabrielle. She told me before the meet that she was not going to let anything keep her from going after her goal - not even her leg.  I did my best to stay positive and encourage her as I have always done.  But to be truthful, all I really wanted to do was protect her and keep her near me.  However, that would have been selfish of me.  The doctors had cleared her to compete, but they cautioned her to not overdo it.

She went through her routines on vault, floor and uneven bars without any major errors.  But then there was BEAM...  that 4 foot tall - 4 inches wide piece of equipment that has been the arch-nemesis of many a gymnast! 

I think we were all holding our breath as she was going through her beam routine.  Everything was going good until she attempted her dismount.  It took her three tries to get it right.  The weeks of not being able to really train on balance beam because of her injury affected her.  But despite the obstacles facing her, she still went out there and competed to the best of her ability. 

Making the National Team after having 5 falls was nothing short of a miracle.  We witnessed God’s faithfulness to our family yet again, and we were all very thankful. 

Two weeks after Visa Championships was the first World Team Selection Camp in Texas.  Gabrielle’s leg was getting better, but she was still not at 100%.  She worked really hard during those two weeks.  When she got to the Selection Camp, she was more confident in herself.  She had a very good camp. After she returned home,  she told me how much she wanted to fulfill her dream of making it onto the World Team.  I told her that she could do anything that she set her mind to do. I told her to “only believe.” 

She got to come home for a week, but then she had to return back to Texas for the Final World Team Selection Camp. After the camp, she said she felt confident. But she didn’t know if she had made the team.  So, we waited.  And we waited.  And we waited.  Then finally the list was posted. 

We weren’t prepared the backlash that came afterwards.  Apparently, there weren't many people that had much faith in the team that was chosen. I didn’t know about the negative comments that were circulating over the internet until Gabrielle told me.  All I could think was that it was so unfortunate that the girls read all of those mean spirited remarks from people who claimed to support Team USA right before they left for World Championships.  I basically told Gabrielle not to read anything else because people can be extremely hateful and cruel.  I also told her to keep in mind that not everybody would be supportive of her fighting for her dreams.

 A BIG thank you to Chris S. for making this video our family loved it!

I'm so glad that opinions don't decide outcomes,  and that they have absolutely no bearing on what you think or feel about yourself unless you let them.  

I must say that it was truly awesome to watch the girls prove that they had what it took to be the 2011 World Champions.  Naturally, we were so happy to see Gabrielle stick her routines and see all of her hard work pay off!