At first I didn't think it was going to be so good....... I approached my car to find my front left tyre was flat, punishment for parking in what I call 'the gravel pit'. A vacant block that has somehow turned into an extra parking lot for residents in my area. We live in quite a built up area so on street parking is often difficult to find. The gravel pit does have it's risks, one of which is random nails left from the construction site next door. This was the cause of my problem.
After trying my best to simulate Michael Schumachers pit crew in action, I raced to meet a friend for a quiet coffee. We chatted and decided that after the mornings events it was probably about time I had the car in for a wheel alignment and a couple of new tracks. I like it how the initial deflated feeling I had in the morning was replaced by a sense of accomplishment with one of those 'little jobs' out of the way.
Being Senior Footballers at the club it's important we help out the younger generation of athletes. These young kids progressing through the grades are definitely going to be the future of the club, and the future of football in the area. You never know.......... the next AFL star could have been born at sign-on today.
Although we aren't considered professional players, and we don't get paid millions of dollars, we are still viewed as role models within the local community. Our job today was to assist with the influx of juniors arriving at the club, helping to make the kids and the parents feel welcome.
As much as I don't like to admit this, I really do enjoy hanging with children. I have a fear that by saying this, friends and family will think I am ready for children. That certainly isn't the case, but what I do enjoy is that kids tend to make you forget about a lot of other things in life. They don't seem to carry the worries or stresses that adults (me) seem to think about on a daily basis. All they are really concerned about is having fun.
Kicking the football = Having fun!!
It was such a great day to kick the football, the sun was shining and there was people everywhere running around the field. The perspiration was certainly flowing. I met one young chap who was only 9 years old, he showed some really good potential as a future footballer. From an outsider looking in, he seemed to have such a passion for the game, running around, kicking goals, tackling his mates, and having a great time. It wasn't until I had a chat to his dad that I found out the young boy was actually suffering from a lack of confidence. His dad wasn't sure if he was going to sign up for another season.
I looked at this young kid and thought, NO WAY. There was obviously something stopping him from wanting to continue playing. I could see how much he loved what he was doing. Maybe another kid told him he wasn't good enough?........ Maybe he had some bad experiences playing a game or training?...... Or maybe he just needed a little bit more attention?...... I wanted to make sure that by the time he left the club today he had a renewed confidence in himself and his ability to keep playing football.
We kicked the footy in the sun for quite some time, I asked him about his favorite team, his favorite players, what position he liked to play, all of which I thought might re-ignite the passion inside him to keep playing. I gave him lots of encouragement and spoke about the great things you can achieve by being involved with a sporting team.
I hope he left the club feeling good about himself, cause he sure had some potential.
I myself walked away from today thinking a) kids do just want to have fun, but b) kids also have personal battles that need to be fought whilst growing up. No matter how old they are, what they enjoy doing, or what they are striving to achieve, they all need encouragement.
I hope playing my role and lending some advice as a senior footballer worked!
See you around the club little mate!
Teals
I hope he left the club feeling good about himself, cause he sure had some potential.
I myself walked away from today thinking a) kids do just want to have fun, but b) kids also have personal battles that need to be fought whilst growing up. No matter how old they are, what they enjoy doing, or what they are striving to achieve, they all need encouragement.
I hope playing my role and lending some advice as a senior footballer worked!
See you around the club little mate!
Teals
you play for aspley??? i live in aspley! where do you guys play? Would you think about coming and talking to kids at my state school about making goals, persistence and success?
ReplyDeleteSara