Concerning Soccer

Last year The Banana asked if she could play soccer.  I didn’t know how that would go, since she hadn’t ever played soccer before, and most of the kids her age that play soccer have been playing since they were small.  Some of them play year round.  Dr. Peds started teaching her some of the rules of the game so she knew what to expect, and she went to a short soccer skills camp that summer.  She thought it would be fun to be part of a team.  I hoped that the other people on her team would be understanding and nice (and they were . . . there were even a couple of other girls playing soccer for the first time).  She ended up liking it enough to decide that she wanted to play again this summer.

I worried again.  Because of the way her birthday falls in the season, she would have to play up a level with girls who were even older than the last year (U14).  Some of them literally play soccer ALL YEAR long.  Admittedly, I did suck in a deep breath when I saw that the games were not all in our end of the city and we had to travel to nearby towns.  Somehow all the scheduling worked out, and she has had a really good time playing.  It shouldn’t surprise me that my running girl who loves people really likes being part of a team, but somehow,  since I’m not a sports person myself, it did surprise me!  (Her older, introverted siblings have gravitated toward sports like cross country and track where they are independently part of a team, but working more alone than together, which makes sense).

The Banana is happy to go to her practices.  She’s happy to go to her games.  She sits in the front seat as I’m driving to the soccer field and says things like, “I’m just happy to get to play.”  She’s had a great “non-screamy” coach (neither of us are fans of screaming coaches . . . and there are a lot of them, it seems!) who is really positive and has the girls playing different positions on the team so they aren’t always playing the position they are best at.  I love that philosophy.  Sometimes they win.  Sometimes they don’t.  The Banana (and the rest of her teammates actually) seem to just maintain a positive attitude and enjoy themselves.  It’s been good, and I’m super grateful.

What I’m not quite used to is soccer fans!  Sometimes the parents on the sidelines have a lot to say!  It’s not like sitting in an audience at a band, orchestra or choir concert, and I often find myself wondering why not?  Why all the noise from the parents?  Why all the sideline coaching?  It boggles my mind.  Sometimes it gives me a small stomach ache (along with the screamy coaches from other teams that we’ve encountered).  Mostly, though, I just sit quietly in my little portable chair and usually put my hood up and enjoy the fresh air.  Our usual soccer field is at the top of the hill, and it’s a windy place.  The cold air off the lake is a beautiful thing.  Sometimes the fog rolls in and it looks like pea soup on the other side of the field.  Sometimes the sun sets and everything is bathed in my favorite kind of golden light.