Last weekend my daughter’s volleyball team played for the league championship. I’m going to be completely honest here and tell you that we were pretty certain they were going to lose. That’s just the kind of parents we are.
Although they had improved a lot during the season, many of them had injuries this year and a lot of them had never played together before. It was quite a ragtag group who had just barely mastered the art of bump, set, spike. Our expectations were so low that my husband actually stayed home (at my request) so our son didn’t have to get up too early.
But, instead of a loss the parents witnessed a win. The championship win, like with a trophy and medals and stuff. Excuse the blurry, enlarged thumbnail photo of my kid, but I had half a team to cut out of this.
I can’t really describe what it was like to watch those girls give it everything they had, despite their reputation. My daughter dove, slid and even bled a little; when all she really had to do was show up, and her teammates did the same.
I don’t frequently learn valuable lessons from teenagers, but I did on Saturday. I can’t tell you how often I feel like I’m trudging along, not making progress, and losing. My weight, the bills, my son’s health and emotional issues, the bills, the bills, the bills, my insomnia, my dirty house, my writing…just everything.
What I realized from that ragtag team is that there is always a chance that I can come out of this on top; that if I dig in and fight hard, everything might turn out in my favor. It’s an uphill battle, but I can’t just give up.
There might just be a trophy waiting for me at the end.
Follow
Email
Comments
Anna Hettick
You go girl!!! Giving up is not an option. 🙂
tara
Hooray! That is awesome! My soccer team used to lose 11-0. Consistently.
You are a great writer and I will totally give you a trophy!
Arnebya
Keep on keepin’ on. That’s where I am right now. If I were there, I’d hold your hand and bring you with me.
Laura in Little Rock
I love that in the previous post, your Mom beat your daughter arm wrestling. Congrats to your girl. My girl, uhm, well, had to learn to keep herself organized to get off probation due to late/missing homework to get to play in the final couple of volleyball games. But she enjoyed it & she worked her tail off to get eligible to play. It is delightful to watch your child triumph and do something unexpected.
Rhea
I love that you get this message from seeing your daughter’s team win. Good insight! and don’t give up!
Shannon
Underdogs are my favorite because they know how to fight. Your daughter must have learned her fight from someone. I think I have a guess of who that might be.
Mare
It’s so inspiring when our kids surprise us and succeed. I’ve done that too, and then feel crummy later that I didn’t believe. What a thrill for your daughter! Congrats!
Chris
This takes me back to my days as the underdog athlete and it feels pretty good to relive it, haha.
It’s great that her team won, I can remember the feeling of pride that came along with that and I can’t wait for my kids to be old enough to experience that for themselves!
meleahrebeccah
Hoooray for your daughter! And also, never give up.
wyngrrrl
Just Yay. There’s a whole lot more but you basically said it all so I’m going to put my shin guards on and go grab the ring. Or at least try to….
Alison
I love this story. It’s more than just being an underdog and defying expectations – it’s about the human spirit, determination, and joy.