I can't exactly say what type of hallucinogenic substance I was taking when I did this, but apparently I signed BOTH boys up to play T-ball this season in our local YMCA league. The only stipulation was that they needed to be on the same team (since T-ball goes from age 4-6).......so I'm now the proud Mom of players #2 and #8 on the Cardinals! First game is tomorrow morning, after 2 weeks of practices on Monday and Thursday nights.
What's interesting is watching the boys out there on the field during practice. It typifies their personalities and behavior traits.........A is the rule-follower, he's very intense, tries so hard to follow step-by-step exactly what the coaches say to do, etc. You can just see the wheels spinning in his brain--"eye on the ball", "step forward and swing", "get in front of the ball" etc.
E, on the other hand, has literally ZERO focus. None. He's thinking about and doing everything but what the coaches are saying. Picking fluffy dandelions to blow the fuzz off, picking tiny wildflowers and running to the bleachers to give them to me, watching birds fly, throwing his glove in the air, introducing himself to parents on the sidelines: "Hi, what's your name?" One night he even sat down on second base like it was a place to relax and hang out!
I should have been a sociologist, LOL! I'm such a people-watcher, and it's so interesting to me, whether it is people I know or even those I don't. Speaking of........what a group of parents we've got on this year's team. There are truly some rednecks, in the greatest Lowcountry sense of the word. And, there is one family in particular that I'm afraid I will not be able to stand for 2 more months.
Their son is 5 (I'm guessing) and both he and his parents already believe he is God's gift to baseball. This T-ball league is totally non-competitive, which means there are no outs in games. Everyone plays, everyone bats in each inning, no score is kept. Most kids have never played any form of baseball before and are just learning basic rules such as hit the ball, run to first base, or get the ball and throw to first base, etc. But this kid already knows ALL of the rules, especially to hear his parents tell it. Last night just took the cake for me, as I listened to them ranting about how pathetic this league was.......how they were having to explain to their son why no one ever gets "out", and why he doesn't need to tag the runner with the ball, etc. They're glad the coach is letting him "play first base" all the time, b/c otherwise he'd just be bored to death around here! Oooh, poor baby..........They assured anyone in earshot that this would definitely be the last season their son plays in this league. Guess he'll be the new shortstop for the Yankees in '09, right?
I don't think we're going to be big-time sports parents, honestly. I see our kids being much more into performance and arts stuff, especially A. But if they enjoy it for now, we're encouraging them to participate......but I just don't know if I can stand the attitude of some of those sports parents. Everything's about their child, nothing's good enough, it's all about getting ahead, being better than others and winning is all that matters. Not like I'm old, LOL, but I think I just have too much "life experience" already to think that everything revolves around my child and that we will always be "winners" with everything coming easy and going perfectly at all times. I just want the boys to have fun, learn the basics, participate, try their best and feel good about it......I don't expect them to make it to the St. Louis Cardinals, we'll be just fine with the YMCA T-ball Cardinals, thank you very much.
1 comment:
That is great that you're letting them do their thing! Who knows? Maybe they'll play for years to come and maybe this will be it, but at least you gave them the chance to decide. Oh, and parents like that DRIVE ME CRAZY. Get over your friggin selves already. I can assure you, the sun does not rise and set in your child's buttcrack. Grrrr.....
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