Frantic Morning

Saturday was another wrestling tournament for our team, and it was WAY over in Hillsdale (this is -according to mapquest -1hr and 37 minutes away). I got up early, got my husband's coaching clothes ironed, warmed up some breakfast for my son, and decided I was going back to bed. They were leaving our house at 5:20 am to make it to the school to catch the bus. But I didn't have to leave till 7, therefore, I should have time to sleep for another 45 minutes before this long long day ahead of me...

6:00 am - Get up, make more coffee, get in the shower and start some laundry.
6:20 am - getting out of the shower, two missed calls from the husband... uhoh...
6:21 am - digging through all our football paperwork looking for contact numbers for one of our wrestlers, the little 85lb kid that missed the bus, and the number my husband had didn't work.
6:25 am - found the number, called hubby back
6:30 am - hubby called back, needs me to get keys to the school, open the school and locker room for this kid, and then give the kid a ride to the tournament. Ok... only I AM STILL IN A TOWEL from my shower.
6:31 am - called my dad, to make sure I could get keys to the school.
6:33 am - called the kids dad, who missed the bus, made arrangements to meet him at the school.

So now I am freaking out... Not only am I now almost 15 minutes behind the schedule I had for myself, but I'm still in a towel, and now I have to stop and get keys and then drive 8 miles in the WRONG direction to unlock the school and pick this kid up, and then try to have him to the tournament in time...

So as I'm yelling at Robby (who I had forgotten about till this time) "Get up, Get up, Get dressed... Hurry we've got to go!!" I'm also pulling on my clothes, trying to at least put a little makeup on and pull my hair up, no time to dry and style, calling my friend who was supposed to meet me at my house to let her know plans have changed and now I will be running a tad bit late... and I am mentally cursing out everyone and everything that has thrown my morning into a tailspin, and I haven't even had a cup of coffee yet! I am mad at the kids' dad for not getting him there in time, mad at myself for going back to bed, venting that my husband won't just leave the kid behind (not that I really would even do that - but at the time it seemed like a viable option). And, this is the SECOND time going to this tournament across the state, that I've had to pick up a wrestler who has missed the bus.

7:02 - I'm out the door, calling the dad again and saying I'll be at the school in 10 minutes.
7:03 - getting the keys from my dad
7:05 - called my friend to tell her the new plan, then realized I DIDN'T BRUSH MY TEETH!
7:14 - unlocking the school and locker room
7:19 - on the road to pick up my friend since there's no point in her driving to my house now...
7:32 - picked up friend, and had to ask her to borrow a tooth brush since I forgot that little bit of importance during my morning rush!
7:37 - we are ON THE ROAD! Only 37 minutes behind schedule! Tournament starts at 9am... Cutting it close.

As I finally start to breath, I realize that maybe there was a reason for this whole fiasco. This kid, whose family obviously has needs bigger than mine, and who was so polite and apologetic the entire time, maybe he just needed to not be on the bus that day. Maybe he needed to be at the tournament and I was making a difference in some way. I started to realize that instead of venting and mentally screaming at everyone for ruining my morning, that maybe I should be grateful that I was able to provide safe transportation. I always believe there is a reason for everything. I may not ever know what that reason is, but there was a reason. Maybe it was just another one of God's ways of "thunking" me on the head with a nice little wake up call to show me that life isn't about me and that calm morning cup of coffee. It's about Him and helping others. We are put here for a reason and we have to allow him to show us what those reasons are, whether we ever understand them or not.

At the end of the day, we made it there about 10 minutes late, but the wrestler had a bye first round and didn't miss any matches. He ended up taking a 3rd place, and he had a nice big medal to bring home. The team squeaked out a 1st place, just 8 points over the 2nd place team. This wrestler did make a difference in that aspect. We couldn't have snagged first without him. And most of all, I survived the frantic rush of it all. My son took 1st as well as the team. No one cared that my hair didn't get done, and I learned a lesson from it all... I would say that the frantic rush turned into a really good day!

Two Cents on Sportsmanship

" Good character is more to be praised than outstanding talent.

Most talents are, to some extent, a gift.

Good character... is not given to us.

We have to build it... by thought, choice, courage, and determination."

~H. Jackson Brown~

As wrestling season gets under way, I am amazed anew by the lack of sportsmanship. Looking around this week in the gym, frustration grew with the scenes around me. The trickle down affect was in full-swing; parents screaming obscenities and booing the officials, wrestlers - who lost, storming off the mat with headgear slamming the door, coaches cheating their way through, and belittling other teams and their own players, and spectators disprespecting the National Anthem. I can handle tears. I am an emotional spectator; I've a tear in my eye during the National Anthem at any event. I know first-hand, how winning and losing can bring a tear to one's eye. What I cannot handle is the unsportsmanlike conduct that surrounds me. So, again, here is my two cents on sportsmanship....

One thing revealed in my participation in youth sports, is that the adults involved shape the attitudes oand characters of the kids playing as much as the sport itself does. A lack of sportsmanship on the mat or field, is a result of a lack of sportsmanship in the stands and at home. In our football league, we stress participation and learning, along with winning and losing. The kids in our program will be disciplined for throwing helmets and cussing, just as the coaches will be for the same behavior. Dismissing parents from games for inapporopriate behavior is unfortunate but necessary at times as well. Adults need to be held to the same standards as the kids that participate.

Teaching grace and dignity in the face of both victory and defeat is a hard lesson for adults and kids the same. Nothing teaches a good lesson, like having a good or a bad example. Sports will shape character, for better or worse. Losing, but giving 100% and walking asway with head high - that's character. Just as winning and walking away without showboating, showing respect for the opponent - that's character. Coaches can preach this until the kids can recite it verbatim, but until they see the results and examples in their home and in the stands around them, it is a lesson lost.

Wrestling Season...

Well, today marks the beginning of one of our "busy seasons." My husband's wrestling team starts practice today, so that means he gets home from work at 7:30 am (he's a 3rd shifter), sleeps till 1pm and then heads to the school for practice, from which he gets home about 6pm. Then, our boys have practice for the "youth wrestling" on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6pm - 7pm.

I can't complain though, my husband loves coaching, and it is fun for all of us for the most part. And after 11 or 12 years of doing this, and still being able to say that he (we) enjoy it, and being able to look forward to the years when our boys will be old enough to be on the school team (which gives us at least another 12 years)... If you can look forward to it and know that you still enjoy it, then I guess you know that you are doing the right thing.

I just have to take a deep breathe, say a quick prayer, and prepare myself for the business of life at home. Which, in most aspects, I'm completely used to by now as it was only 2 months ago when we wrapped up football season. So it's just getting back into the "groove" of things. Lots of crock pot dinners, more fast food and pizza dinners, and long weekends in the gym...

But I have to say that I am thankful that I have a husband who is involved, who loves the sports and the kids, and who is good at what he does. I can be a proud coaches wife in any gym that I walk into. I get to know a lot of good people in our schools and community, and I get to know the kids that are in school with my kids as well as their parents. I am thankful that I have been given the ability to work at home, so that I can spend that lunch period catching up on dinner and laundry, and have more time when my husband is at home. And, I'm thankful that God has seen to give me the sanity to deal with a crazy schedule like this! So, Hello Wrestling Season, and here we go again....