Like Kim Clijsters, What Do We Inherit From Our Parents?

I have to admit I am slightly fascinated by Kim Clijsters, the 2011 female winner of the Australian Open. For one she is professional tennis player and the fact that she is also a mother makes her story that much more compelling. She joins a slim demographic—women who have met athletic success after pregnancy. This year, Kim wore a green dress to honor Evonne Goolagong Cawley—an Australian Aboriginal woman who also won the Open as a mom. Considering Goolagong’s roots and what she overcame, her story rivals Kim’s.

And yet, the Aussies love Clijsters as if she were their own. She is still affectionately nicknamed “Aussie Kim.” She almost was! Clijsters lived in Australia when was engaged to fellow tennis pro, Lleyton Hewitt. When their relationship ended, she returned home where she met professional basketball player, Brian Lynch. Lynch, an American by way the Jersey Shore (my Jersey Shore—Belmar!) played hoops at Villanova before playing for many teams in several European countries.

I won’t mince words here. Lleyton Hewitt is one good-looking guy. Good for her and yet Clijsters ended up with a great guy; a man who was willing to renounce his career so their family could be together. It is both unusual and understandable. Furthermore, in her post match interview, she said her nanny would have to work later that night because she had to rest for her championship match. Awesome.

And as interesting as her story is today, so is her background. Kim Clijsters is the daughter of a international soccer star, Lei Clijsters, and Els Vandecaetsbeek, a former Belgian gymnastics champion. Clijsters’ performance on the tennis court reveals those roots. She has incredible strength and endurance; the shots she reaches is amazing. Clijsters says that she inherited a soccer player’s legs from her father and a gymnast's flexibility from her mother. Watch for no less than five minutes and she will nearly do the splits to return a ball. She recovers with ease.

I hope we all recognize what gifts we have received from our parents. I have my dad’s acute memory and my mother’s ability to actively listen. I would like to suggest however that the greatest gift a parent can give their child isn’t only their virtues, an education, athletic opportunities, or music, art, or dance classes. It is their witness of faith, a community of faith and roots in a faith tradition. What greater gift than to raise one’s child with faith.

It has been an awesome privilege to see my friends become parents; what makes an individual more selfless? And yet a number have decided not to have their children baptized. Others have opted not to raise their child in the Catholic Church or any other religious community. They do not want to force their beliefs on their children. They want their son or daughter to choose faith for themselves.

Such logic is unclear to me. Parents choose just about everything for their kids—schools, extracurricular activities, neighborhoods, opportunities and more. Why wouldn’t they choose to cultivate and nurture relationship with God in a formal, intentional way?

In his book “The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything,” James Martin says “the benefits of walking along the path of belief are clear: faith gives meaning to both the joys and struggles of life. Faith in God means that you know you are never alone. You know and are known. Life in a worshiping community provides companionship. During times of hardship, faith is an anchor. And Christianity holds out the promise of life beyond this earthly one.” What a beautiful way to think of our journey. Indeed, parents are with their children at the start of this journey, yet no one but God alone can accompany us every step of the way.

The recent feast day of Saints Timothy and Titus reminded me of the role of not only our parents, but our ancestors and those in our Christian family have in forming our faith. The three New Testament pastoral letters attributed to Paul—Titus, 1 Timothy, and 2 Timothy reveal a close, mentor-like relationship between these men. Titus and Timothy are portrayed as recipients of the Gospel through Paul's preaching. Because of their relationship with St. Paul and the way the Gospel took root in their hearts, they too spread the “good news.”

But Paul alone did not shape Timothy’s great faith. Timothy's mother Eunice and grandmother Lois, converts to Christianity long before him, are praised for the sincerity of their faith that now lives on in their grandson and son. 2 Timothy 1:5, reminds us that the most valuable gift we can pass on to the next generation is our witness of faith.

Timothy grew to become one of Paul's dearest friends and collaborators in mission, as would Titus, whom Paul refers to as “my true son in our common faith” (Titus 1:4). In his “Ignatian Thought of the Day” Sean Lynch writes, “Both became bishops of the early Church, and both shared the gospel with the next generation of Christians, who labored to keep the vision and message of the Lord Jesus Christ alive.”

The Church teaches that every generation needs to be evangelized and that Christian parents are the primary educators in faith. Moms and dads, grandparents, uncles and aunts, have their role in leading the next generation to discover the richness and vitality of faith. And what an awesome responsibility that is. Love and life, soul and salvation are the very stuff we seek to model, share and discover with the young.

Clijsters ended up pursuing a sport that neither or her parents played professionally, but the obviously exposed their daughter to the wide world of sports. She wouldn’t be where she is today had they not.

And as for her own family, whether they know it or not, Kim Clijsters and her husband Brian Lynch have already given their daughter Jada so much. The have given the example in their commitment to family. Clijsters has proven that a female athlete can remain competitive after pregnancy. She has won three grand slam titles since Jada was born, she is tied with Margaret Smith Court for the most titles by a mother on tour. I hope all of these great gifts are underscored by the gift of faith.

Photo Credits
Clijsters with Jada
Clijsters a gymnast
Sts. Timothy & Titus
Clijsters-Lynch Family

Australia Day + Australian Open = A G'day

Do kids still have pen pals? Thanks to technology, one can be in touch with anyone, anytime, anywhere. This wasn’t always true. The landline and the written word held their domain; Pacific Bell/AT&T and the United States Post Office had power. Thus, from fifth though eighth grade, my primary education of Australia wasn’t through world history class, Men at Work music videos or even Crocodile Dundee, it was through my pen pal Katie.

Katie sent stickers, postcards and trinkets from her homeland. Anything she sent was cool; it was from “Down Under.” I loved receiving the stamped letters with Par Avion next to their attractive flag. I learned about more this continent than just koalas, kangaroos and other marsupials. The greatest lesson she taught me was her understanding of her ethnic heritage.

Ask any American his or her ethnic background and if they’re like me, they have it down to percentage points. I am 50% Irish, 35% German (even though my surname hijacks the other components of my identity) 15% French—très bien! I’ve even been told I am a tiny bit Swiss (but that math—or maths in Australia—doesn’t add up, does it?). When I asked Katie about her family’s history, she said “well, I’m half Irish and half Scottish, but really, I’m 100% Aussie.”

Even at the age of 12, I understood she had a sense of pride that was distinct, that was nationalistic. I know that what makes our country so unique is that we are comprised of so many different cultures but so is Australia. When will we recognize that we are Americans in the way that Katie saw herself as Australian?

And today is the perfect day to raise this question because—January 26 for all Aussies, is Australia Day. Simply put, it celebrates all things Aussie–first landings, first settlement, first meat pie eaten, or the first game of backyard cricket ever played. In actuality, the official national day of Australia commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove in 1788 and the proclamation at that time of British sovereignty over the eastern seaboard of New Holland.

As I was watching the Australian Open last night, the announcer—former pro and pro-coach Darren Cahill reminded everyone of the holiday. A novel component of watching the tournament, which takes place at Flinders Park in Melbourne, is that all activity is 20 hours ahead of us. I saw Andy Murray defeat on Australia Day –only it was 10:00 p.m. last night, January 25 here in the States.

The Australian Open captures a tiny slice of what makes Australia the special place it is. This island continent is rich with natural beauty and resources. I have heard people raise the question What has Australia done? What have they achieved? and What impact have they made on the world? But I have always believed its greatest resource is its people.

 

Capture but 20 minutes of any match and you will find evidence to prove Australians love sports. They love life. The tourney is remarkably well attended and the crowd is incredibly vocal. They take to their own, this year that meant Lleyton Hewitt or back in the day, my personal favorite—the serve and volley sensation Pat Cash. But what is equally endearing is who they embrace as their own For example, Aussies love and still do gentleman and two-time champion Stefan Edberg so much that the tournament's logo is the distinctive serve of the Swede.

I like to hold an innocuous debate—Is God’s greatest creation in humanity or in nature? It wasn’t until I went to Yosemite that nature ever gave humanity a run for the money. I do believe however that the Aussies with their love of: life, cold beer, the outdoors, and their country lean the argument toward humanity. I need to visit Australia, preferably during the Open to end this debate.

Thank you Lord for diversity of culture and people throughout the world, especially the Aussies. Cheers!

Photo Credits
Flag Map
Australia Day