Thursday, 20 November 2008

• Benefits of Sports: The Life Lessons My Kids Are Learning

  Guest post submitted by whateverstate

  

  When I was a child, I was athletically inept. Ok, truth be told, I am still athletically inept. I can't run in a straight line, I can't throw or catch a ball, and I can't make a basket, woven or otherwise. It didn't matter – I was a musician. I read books. I was a homeschooler. Nothing otherwise was expected of me. I didn't miss sports, and sports didn't miss me.

  I married a soccer player. He played in an elite soccer club. Growing up in Peru, he coached and refereed in college. Our early married weekends were often spent watching soccer matches on big screens in crowded Hispanic restaurants. I blissfully, ignorantly downed Inca Kolas and ate the chiccharrones. I had no idea which direction "our team" was shooting, wondering to myself if there were free refills.

  When the ultrasound decreed our first child would be a man-child, he celebrated by purchasing a Mickey Mouse soccer onesie. That should have been my first tip-off. Signing our eldest son up for soccer at age three could have been my next clue. Now, many years down the road, I am busy nearly every night of the week shuttling the three oldest to soccer, soccer, and football. Their practices always overlap. Sometimes the games make Saturdays unbearably hectic, and additionally, the equipment is expensive. One of my children is in play-offs while the other is going into Academy Soccer next year. I had to go and marry that cute soccer player!

  This is why many homeschoolers, and even many Christian parents, won't participate in extracurricular sports. I have heard and read many reasons, which we won't go into here, why parents may not want to involve their children in such activities. I understand and respect parents who have such views, however, despite the drawbacks and even potential hazards, sport involvement has been a very positive aspect of my children's education.

  My children are learning valuable lessons in group dynamics, cooperation, competition, sportsmanship, loyalty, perseverance, determination, work ethic, and it's testimony to the direct result of participation in city sports leagues. They simply could not get the same lessons in a church group among people of the same background and values. Maybe my son is on a team with another boy who does not obey his coach, how will he respond to someone whose parents don't immediately force him to do right? How will my daughter answer a girl who tells her that her father doesn't care if she tries her best or not on the field? What will my son say to the opponent with "bathroom language"?

  Now, my husband and I aren't stupid. We aren't going to dump our precious children into the hands of just anyone to mold however they will. My husband is the coach of two of my children's teams, and the third child is coached by a nearby, highly-qualified Christian man. The soccer leagues and football leagues have clear guidelines governing player, coach, and spectator behavior. We are grateful to live in a community with a well-organized and disciplined sports program.

  Participation in team sports gives children the chance to learn many life lessons. They learn the goal is more important than their petty problems. They learn to place others before themselves. They learn to work together, to plan, strategize, and organize their thoughts and equipment. They learn to get up off the ground, dust themselves off, and keep running ahead. They learn to "take one for the team." They learn to smile and congratulate the winner.

  I am so glad my husband opened my eyes and my mind to the education of team sports and insisted all our children participate in them whole-heartedly. For the frustration and expense, I am gaining cooperative, hard-working, determined young people with valuable skills to work with others.

  What do sports mean to you, did you play any sports growing up? Do your children participate in any sports?

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