This will probably be a short post, though they are all intended to be short.

In several posts, I have described #TeamJackson and #Jax5 and #Jackson5 as team names for our family. Yes, we really gave our family a “team name” Why? Because once you name your team you can identify ‘it’. ‘It’ is no longer an ‘it’. ‘It’ now has an identity that hopefully my kids, Special K and I can be proud of. The five of us are responsible for creating the identity. #TeamJackson has high expectations, integrity, responsibility, and accountability. #TeamJackson, for us, is like a family crest of medieval times. We wear #TeamJackson proudly.

#TeamJackson

Seriously though, we sign our Christmas Cards this way. We often use #TeamJackson/#Jax5/#Jackson5 in social media posts, and in our everyday discussions. It is common for a fist bump to include “TeamJackson Woot! Woot!” or ‘Way to go #TeamJackson!” or “Know it didn’t go your way, but you are still apart of #TeamJackson.”

#TeamJackson is more than just a name, it is a place where my kids belong if nowhere else, a place they can take a breath, and just be. It is a place of high expectations but a place to get help to meet the expectations. It’s a place of fun and faith. It is also a place they will find their harshest critics. For it is much better for me to tell my daughter she has paint on her face from art than a complete stranger. This place is not necessarily a physical place. For example. My daughter ‘the Future’ was running one of her Cross Country races and as usual, I was at the finish line. It was not her best race, though in comparison she placed in the top 5. She did not meet HER goal and was crushed (given the ambient temperature was 100 deg. F, it was understandable) but SHE was not happy with her performance. I was there to see her finish and the look of heartbreak on her face. I quietly met her at the end of the finish chute and we walked away from the crowd. No words were said. We walked as far away from folks as we could, and with me between everyone else and her, She was in her #TeamJackson space and she was safe to ball. (My daughter runs with emotion) Still, we didn’t talk. When she had composed herself, The Future started the conversation, and I listened, we talked about what she learned, what could she have done differently, and where do we go from here. After about 5 minutes, The future was back on the course cheering on the rest of the racers in the race.

What I am illustrating is that #TeamJackson is more than a name, it is belonging and space where we can be ourselves. It is associated with excellence, where it is okay to fail, but also to pick up ourselves and go on, it is a place of strong faith more than just a physical dot on a map.

As in the moment with The Future, there have also been many moments with The President, my middle son, and The Great one, my youngest. They all speak with pride about #TeamJackson.

Interestingly enough, at a recent track meet, The President and The Future ran together and crossed the finish line #3 and #4. We met at the finish area on the track and were Fist bumping with our normal “Way to go #TeamJackson” and a couple of the kids’ teammates said, “Hey, how do we get to be on TeamJackson.”

I was absolutely floored. Shocked. Speechless. I never thought that one, people would notice, or two, ever want to be apart of #TeamJackson. Are we really that different? Does someone want to be a part of our team? Do they really know what they are asking for? This made me once again give many thanks for the blessings we have in #TeamJackson. It is a thought I will have to ponder, How does one become a part of #TeamJackson?

So much for a short post. Well – we will try again tomorrow.

SIDENOTE: Yes, all nicknames are earned, and in time the stories for how the kiddos got their names will be relevant, so I will share.