Give Your Kid a Sport They Can
Love Forever
by
Amy Cortez, Editor The Eclectic Telegraph
One of the saddest
things I have seen lately was on a soccer field. A kid about 12,
had a throw in that was OK by my standards, but not OK by the coach's.
He yelled from all the way across the field "What was that?
What's the matter with you? And you are my granddaughter!"
Needless
to say, I was horrified.
As
I looked around the field, there were hundreds, if not a thousand
people on these several plots of grass, all painted up for soccer.
It didn't take much for me to realize that the people on these fields
were not the least bit affected by this coaches outburst, and I
am sure many heard it.
When
did we become so harsh with our children?
My
son used to play soccer. That was 6 years ago however. I remember
that he would get panic attacks in the car on the way to practice
and especially for games. His last coach was similar in demeanor
as the one I had witnessed this day and he wasn't the first coach
like this, but it was the last one for him. This sort of abusive
behavior is why he won't play the game on a team anymore. I fully
supported his decision, because I agreed that the behavior from
the coach was unacceptable.
The
last time my son played soccer was in a pickup game on the island
of Mayreau in a school yard there. There it was fun, not to
mention, real soccer, not this sanitized version of American-kid
soccer.
You
don't have to be a soccer mom.
Sports
are important to the development of our children especially these
days when it has become the norm to plop in front of a computer
or TV screen for hours at a time. But you don't have to be a soccer
mom. Soccer mom is a really bad stereotype in my opinion these days.
It seems, soccer moms condone the sort of behavior I witnessed by
this coach. By not saying anything about this sort of behavior,
they give permission to this sort of person to verbally abuse their
kids. An besides, it's not even real soccer what I see kids playing
here in America.
 I
love the water and kayaking is a new love for me. I have introduced
kayaking to my son and I believe he loves it too. Every time we
see a scull boat or another kayak on top of a vehicle, he gets excited
to see it. At 15 he still goes on my goofy
outings with me.
My
dad taught me golf and I love it. It is a sport I still play. My
dad has an immense level of patience, more than me, for teaching
golf to my son and at this very minute playing for the first time
on a regulation course [up until now it had been the executive courses].
He will also volley tennis balls [a sport he's learning] withmy
son until one of them gets tired.
For
years my son has been working towards a blackbelt in Taekwondo,
not because he's been told to, but because he really loves the sport.
He is one belt away from being a blackbelt. He has a wonderful coach
at an Olympic training center, it has been the love this coach shows
for the sport that keeps my son so interested and motivated.
When
we lived in Utah, I took my son to Sundance Mountain resort for
a beginners ski lesson. By the time we moved away from Utah, he
had become a member of the Alta Youth Race team because he loves
the sport. Everything that happened in between these events were
driven by my son's love for the sport and his witnessing coaches
who loved the sport.
Kids
don't deserve to be verbally abused on a soccer field - or anywhere
else for that matter. Kids don't need to be bullied into playing
a sport well, they'll do it because they love it. Alot of what I
saw on that soccer field that day was verbal abuse and bullying
and that is just so sad.
In
my opinion, as parents, and especially as homeschool parents, it
is our responsibility to introduce things our kids will love - hopefully
forever. The best way to do this is to introduce things you love,
show a passion for it and they'll "get it". I promise.
Daphne
the Science Guinea Pig "Weighs" in on a Brand New Local
"Treasure"
Who's
Daphne the Science Guinea Pig?
Read what she
has to say at the Java House....
|
You're
passionate about math and science. You already like to think about,
talk about, and do math and science, but you also want to know
what else is out there-and who else is out there. Or maybe you're
someone with a developing interest in math or science and trying
to figure out what's out there for you and who's out there to
share your ideas with.
