Would you like some tylenol? I ask. Yes! the fencer replies. I pull a sealed bottle of medication out of my handbag. Pour two gel capsules into her waiting palm. Hopefully that will bring down your fever.
I am standing by the side of a fencing strip. Minutes earlier, my #husband was competing here. My three kids are ensconced on a bench, watching kid videos on my phone via the club wifi connection. In a crowded room, chairs are a scarce commodity. Can we stay and watch my friend fence? husband asks. Sure. My afternoon work meeting got rescheduled for this morning, so I am all clear for the rest of the day.
A cluster of women’s épée fencers arrive. My weapon. And also? My division. I quickly assess the field. One fencer stands out. I nudge my nine year old daughter. Look at her. She’s really good. And she’s tall, like you are going to be. When the fencer unhooks, we start talking. And that is how I wind up giving her fever medication.
Twenty years ago I was a walk-on athlete for my college fencing team. A friend needed a chaperone for a national competition and knew her family would accept me. After a whirlwind trip to California, I qualified for my first and last junior fencing event. The friendship didn’t last, but my love for fencing was born on the spot. The stance felt awkward. I developed an injury in the first few months. But something kept drawing me back. I remember the first time my body executed an action on its own, flawlessly parrying an incoming blade and riposting to score a touch.
Fencing never bores me, unlike every other sport I have played. The more I learn, the more I realize I don’t know. The older I get, the more closely I bond to the sport and community. Once you are a fencer, you are always a fencer. And I am married to someone who is instantly recognizable wherever we go, plus I have earned standing in my own right from my results as a competitive athlete in the years between college and parenthood. Fencing provides friendship and a warm welcome as clubs all over the world open their doors to my family.
And now? That community is extending its embrace to the next generation. Last week, I attended a practice where I watched the daughter of an old friend giggle and bond with my nine year old daughter. I never know who I am going to see at fencing tournaments. But every time I reconnect with a friend? It is an absolute joy.
Kathy Zucker is an international social media Shorty Award winner, mother of three and a startup founder at companies including the Metro Moms Network®.
