Writing Wrongs

October 13, 2006

Poor Andrew. It�s been a rough football season. His team lost the first few games, but they held it together, made a really good showing. Then they won a game. But then, something happened, because it�s been all downhill since. They�ve lost, in a big way, the remaining games, with one to go on Saturday.

I think last night�s loss was especially tough, since Andrew was team co-captain (they rotate the boys through this position). It made it more personal. Plus, he took a huge hit, a tackle from behind, a football helmet in the thighs. The back of the thighs is one place they don�t wear padding. Think for a moment how much that would hurt.

I wasn�t at the game (too cold for Kyra, so we stayed home), which is probably good, since I do an internal freak out every time one of the boys takes a hit. Andrew was able to stand after a few seconds, then play resumed.

But when they rotated the boys out (they rotate every four plays), Andrew left the field with tears streaming down his face. He hurt, but he stayed in. He doesn�t goof off or piss and moan when it�s his turn to sit on the sidelines. He drinks his Gatorade and watches the game. On the field, he�s the picture of total concentration.

Last week, when walking back to the car, he said to Bob, �Daddy, know what the other team has that we don�t? Teamwork.�

It would be nice if, for once, he was on a team with a winning record. But he really reached a new level of maturity this year, in both the game and his behavior. After the first loss, he stopped sulking about the score. You can tell, he loves to play, no matter who is winning and who is losing.

Love of the game beats out the agony of defeat. Easy to say, hard to apply.

Charity Tahmaseb wrote at 12:39 p.m.

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