Page 5 of A Kickin' Karate Christmas
Chapter three
Jake
Posted By: DADvertising
Do any of you ever feel like you’re in completely over your head? My daughter (6) started karate a few months ago at this small local dojo in town. I just found out that it’s struggling, and I offered to help. (I work in marketing.) I have a few ideas, but I keep thinking of the worst case scenarios. Like what if it doesn’t work and I have to tell my kiddo that she has to leave the dojo she loves? How do you all cope with feeling like this? Or just the fear that you might accidentally mess up and ruin your child’s entire life before it’s even really begun?
Also does anyone have any potential ideas for fundraisers or events to save a local business? Marketing? Anything?
Reply From: UncleSam
I’m in web design, and my old friend/new boyfriend and I are currently working our butts off to restore our town’s website and bring the financials back into the black as far as tourism is concerned. We came up with a contest idea. Message me for more details.
Also, in answer to your previous question, I think the fear that you might accidentally screw up your child’s future is a constant presence when you’re a parent. I don’t have much advice, just know that a lot of us are in that same boat.
Reply From: TeenDaddy
I often feel like I’m ruining my daughter’s life. Having her at seventeen makes me feel like she started at a disadvantage. Her parents didn’t have stable jobs and their life together. My parents kicked me out, me and her mother were still in high school, and now she doesn’t even have a mother left.
So yeah, I get you. And I definitely get your fears. Unfortunately, I don’t have great advice about coping strategies. I’m just doing my best to give my daughter a stable life. Knowing I’m doing all I can and giving it my all helps a little.
As for the fundraisers, I don’t have a lot of ideas. But you could try looking into getting the dojo grants for funding (I do know my daughter’s dance studio got a grant from a local charity last year).
Iclosedmylaptopand sighed.
The house was too quiet with Emerson at her mother’s house. It always felt like that. I missed the patter of her feet running around, the noise of her cartoons playing on the TV, and the sound of her little voice asking for a snack. These nights were always the hardest. You’d think, after almost two years, I’d have gotten used to them by now. That maybe I’d even be grateful for the quiet.
Instead, I just felt lonely.
I tried to think of things to do. I cleaned the kitchen. I vacuumed the living room. I asked for advice about the dojo from the single dad forum I’d joined when Emerson was younger and I was completely lost. I’d even done all of Emerson’s laundry. I was now at a loss.
My eyes moved to my phone. I’d left my meeting with Mateo only a few hours before, and I was tempted to text him. Except I had nothing new to offer, no new ideas. I’d not gotten any feedback from the forum yet. I opened my laptop to check again.
When I did, there were still no responses.
I navigated to Mateo’s website and started making detailed notes on things that could be improved. It didn’t take long beforeI started putting the improvements in place, just to kill time. A few hours later, I finished. The site didn’t require nearly as many updates as I thought it would when I’d first started making notes. I’d updated the font and colors. I’d changed a little of the layout, making it friendlier to people who weren’t using computers. I even grabbed pictures from the dojo’s social media to show what the kids would be learning.
There were other parts that just had placeholder text. I wanted to add a more personal touch: feedback from other parents or children, sections about the senseis at the dojo, little things like that. The human element could make all the difference to a parent who was looking into the school for the first time.
My eyes drifted back to my cell phone, and this time, I had an excuse to text Mateo.
Jake
I made an updated version of the website.
Show you on Monday?
I stared at my phone, willing him to answer my text. When he didn’t answer right away, I forced myself to put the phone down. He was young. He probably had something to do that night, something with his friends. He probably had a life outside of his job. Wouldn’t that be a novel concept? What did I have, outside of work and Emerson? I had a few friends—mostly people that I knew from the office and a guy I’d known since university—but they weren’t the kind of friends I could just send a message to when I was bored.
My life felt as empty as my house.
I sighed again and turned on the television. I might not live an exciting life, but I could watch shows where other people did.
Mateo texted back on Sunday, just as Emerson got home. I sent him a quick message making plans to talk to him after Emerson’s class the next day. She wouldn’t mind sticking around the dojo, practicing with her friends or running around like a maniac. She’d never once minded extra time spent in the dojo, and I didn’t think she would start now.
When her class finally came around, I noticed my eyes drifting to her teacher more than usual. Strands of hair fell into his dark eyes, escaping his ponytail. His skin glistened with sweat as he helped students practice kicks and punches.
I shouldn’t be watching him the way that I was. He was Emerson’steacher.
