Winners and Losers

I have shared before my #boymom status is a new road I have never journeyed before.  I grew up in a family with a sister, a dad that really didn’t watch many sports, and a mom who didn’t care much for sports either. Most of my young adult years were full of music lessons, band, and theater.

The family that I have now loves sports.  All sports.  And I am learning.  I am learning the language, the attitude, the different plays, the different uniforms, and all the different rules.

 This year my oldest is on a newly formed baseball team and until Wednesday night they had not won a single game.  They have good players and good coaches, yet they had not formed a rhythm as a team.  It’s hard to go out every game and lose.  It’s hard to keep your spirits up.  It’s hard to keep trying.  I thought, well this has been a great lesson on losing. 

At the end of each game, the coaches would discuss the different mistakes (which I now know are called errors) and the plays that were well executed.  Then the coach would say, “I am proud of you boys.”

I am ashamed to say after a really tough game when the coach said, “I am proud of you boys,” I thought…no, stop saying that!!! Tell them they have to work harder, they have to communicate as a team, they have to… 

Then I knew I was wrong. 

The losing wasn’t the point.  The playing was the point.  After one particular game we received an email from the coach listing every player and why he was proud of their playing.  Then he told them to keep working and practicing all week long and to remember the next game will be a brand new opportunity to play. 

So, in the CRAZY month of May, when our to-do lists are full and our calendars are crazy, let us remember that it is not about what is on our to-do list, but about living our lives to the fullest. 

My perspective:  Keep your eyes on what is happening now.  Live into it…the moments pass by so fast and every day is a blessing.  Honestly, even the bad ones are part of who you are.

Ecclesiastes 5:18-20, MSG After looking at the way things are on this earth, here’s what I’ve decided is the best way to live: Take care of yourself, have a good time, and make the most of whatever job you have for as long as God gives you life. And that’s about it. That’s the human lot. Yes, we should make the most of what God gives, both the bounty and the capacity to enjoy it, accepting what’s given and delighting in the work. It’s God’s gift! God deals out joy in the present, the now. It’s useless to brood over how long we might live.