I have been spending time away from running lately and spending more time coaching my daughter's t-ball team. I am sure that many of you can guess where this is going and you are right! I really enjoy being apart of this opportunity to reach out to my child and other children as well. To talk about the team I have fourteen kids, mostly boys as one would suspect, and these are some of the most fun children to have on a team. I have two other parents helping with the coaching and that makes a big difference and that helps to keep comments down. I also employ the age old strategy of involving my critics. I am always on the look out for a parent or two who think they can do a better job and then put them on the field or in the dugout so they can be part of the solution. This serves two purposes, one they don't criticize what they are apart off and second they get a taste of trying to herd cats. I know, I know, I said it...managing 14 kid on a baseball field is like herding cats.
Having never been successful at herding cats and had little hope of keeping all the kids focused during a game, that even when played by well trained adults can be agonizingly slow, is just as slow when they are actually apart of the team. I have been able to make it through the only practice I want to have and the first game. I am so glad that we don't keep statistics for a group this young and growing up where score was everything, I am equally as glad that there is no score. I want to tell you about my kids. I have some older some younger, some new to the sport and some in their second year, but no matter how long they played they are passionate about getting a hold of the ball and hitting the ball. It is great to line them up as one big sweeping arc and then let them go where they may when the ball is hit. An untrained eye or visitor from outer space would have a hard time telling the difference between fielding in a t-ball game and a shark feeding frenzy both are amazing to watch and has the potential for blood shed.
I also have some real characters on my team. I have some very good hitters (one managing to smack me in the face with a line drive) and very good runners. I have one that, right now, always runs for the pitcher's mound when the ball is hit and still others that aren't terribly sure where second is and if it is necessary to tag the base. The part I enjoy best is how they all get confused about the importance of actually touching home plate. Several were coming up short and had to be encouraged to keep going those final 3 or 4 steps.
At the end of the day it is a fun game with good kids. I'm not sure RK will be a heavy softball player in the years to come, we may have a girl into dance on my hands, or a soccer girl since she has a friend that plays that sport. I will make sure to be there and coach if needed based on the best of my ability. Keep in mind I know nothing about the following sports:
Soccer
Lacrosse
Fencing
Cricket
Rugby
Disc Golf
Lawn Darts
Surfing
Snow Boarding
Snow Skiing
or hockey (lawn or ice)
Luckily I do know about the following sports:
Football
Baseball
Bull riding
Bronco Busting
Ultimate Frisbee
Golf
Swimming
Endurance Running
Water Skiing
Skateboarding
Motorcycle Racing
and Fishing (yes it is a sport for some people...Come on it's on TV and has been for years)
I look forward to the next game and to see the team again and come this fall to whatever sport or non-sport RK may be interested in.
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