I remember when I was about twelve years old and I went through a growth spurt.
I went from 5’4 to 5’10 from the age of 12 to 13. Ouch! My knees were hurting bad. It happens to everyone when they go through quick growth spurts – the knees suffer from all the stretching.
I still grew another inch while in high school, praying all the time that I would not make it to six feet.
Hey, a girl during the ‘80s who stood six feet tall – this was pre-WNBA – was in for more teasing than I could handle.
My parents were thrilled that I had a growth spurt, but my brother was sick. I passed him up and left him sulking. At only 5’7 as a sophomore in high school, he hated the fact that his little sister was towering over him.
Our oldest son is only 15 but stands about 6’5″. Our second son has always been about 10 inches shorter than him, much to son number one’s delight.
Recently, son number two has been going through some physical changes.
He lost over 15 pounds of pre-adolescent weight several months after his 13th birthday last year.
His voice is starting to creek and crack and deepen. Sometimes on the phone, he gets confused for his older brother. Other times, callers proudly announce, “Hello, Ms. Walker.”
Much to son number two’s NON-delight.
I don’t think we noticed right away, but somewhere between the end of spring break and the beginning of summer, son number two has grown!
He has a slight mustache; son number one says it’s dirt.
His voice is getting stronger; son number one says he’s forcing his voice to sound deep.
Most noticeable is the fact that he is now six-feet-tall. Son number one has no reasoning for this physical change. He just says, “I’m still taller.”
It is amazing to watch our children go from diaper-wearing, bottle-feeding infants to tall, pretty-good-looking adolescents.
I asked son number two how he is feeling these days as he goes these physical changes. Is he excited? Does he feel stronger, more agile, a little bit handsome?
To which he replied, in a half-man, half squeaky-boy voice, “My knees hurt.”
He’s not a boy/man of many words.
Thanks for sharing.