My Youth Sports Experience
I remember the excitement and nervousness of the first day of a new season as a player. The anticipation of new opportunities and a fresh felt like sitting across the room from a stack of gifts at Christmas. On the other hand, the anxiety of comparing my skills, size and speed with everyone else to figure
out who I was going to battle for playing time.
Unfortunately, my mental calculations and internal prognostications rarely came into reality. My self evaluation was usually far more generous than any coach saw. In retrospect, my anxiousness and determination to follow directions, would limit my ability to just play the game. It is ironic because that my motivation for joining the team in the first place.
I was always on the taller end of the scale for my age and everyone seemed to notice (at least in my head). I felt like, everyone would ask, “Do you play basketball?” Of course, as an wise and experienced 9 year old, I internalized the innocent conversation starter as a social expectation. “If I’m tall, I should take advantage.”, I told myself.
Just to be clear, I was not a naturally gifted athlete. However, I did work hard with dedication, repetition and millions of failures to develop enough skills to play through high school. I won’t rattle off any stats because there is not much there, but I did get enough playing time to have just one coach invite me to play at the next level. However, that was not the direction for me and I have no regrets.
The Value of Youth Sports
When my high school career was over, it was an emotional few days of my life that I will never forget. While there was a very slim chance I would be able to ‘walk on’ at the division II university I was planning to attend in the fall. I knew nothing was guaranteed. So, the likelihood of not playing competitive basketball again for the rest of my life, was like losing a family member. It was an important part of my life and now it was over.
In retrospect, I became immediately nostalgic because I would miss the people and places that had become friends. I realized how priceless the whole experience was to me. There was nothing anyone could do to “fix it”. Unlike missing a basket or turning the ball over, it wasn’t something I could just “try again” or “do better next time”. It was over!
There are plenty of things in life we can’t wait to finish like a root canal, stomach flu or a bad boss. These will never evoke fond memories. Clearly, those things deserve to be forgotten, because they were not pleasant experiences.
My sense of loss at the end of my career was a clear indication that I had a great experience. I wanted to ‘keep it alive’ because it was so positive. It taught me and reinforced many values I hold dear today. It also helped me understand my limitations and by ability to improve. It taught me I need to work with other people. It was a microcosm of ‘teams’ I would be part of the reset of my life; family, work, church and other groups of people with a purpose.
Since then, I have experienced things I can only hope to share with the kids I coach today.
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