I'm thinking they should perhaps change Thurman's soccer team uniforms to that described in the title. For that would better display the essence of Charlie Brown the team seems to have acquired.
Five games into the season so far, Thurman's team is 0-3-2, meaning the have yet to win a game, have lost three, and tied twice. The scores of those games have been 0-4, 0-3, 0-0, 0-2, and 1-1.
Note that their poor team was held without a single goal for its first four games. Their first goal, scored on Saturday, was on a penalty kick (in all fairness, so was the other team's goal). However, when the kick went in, all of the kids (and quite a few of the parents) celebrated as if they had just won the World Cup. It was 45 seconds of pure bliss and pandemonium.
Now, I have to freely admit I am one of those dads. One of the dads who cheer their kids loudly, often embarrassing their wives (and possibly the children too) in the process. Granted, I'm not going to get into fisticuffs with other parents, or start berating the coaches for poor decisions - I do have a modicum of self-control. But I do get overly invested emotionally in games in which my son is participating. I just can't help it. Last year in instructional league, I was an "assistant coach", emphasis on assistant, as not much coaching was going on. When Thurman scored a goal last year, I nearly exploded with pride and joy. I think I was happier than he was, though he was very happy.
Anyway, it's just hard for me to watch them lose. I'm all about learning how to lose, and being gracious in defeat. But you know...I just want them to win some too, to feel the other side of it. As one of the other parents said to me, "I just don't want them to go around with the taste of losing always in their mouth."
You do see it in some sports these days. Teams so downtrodden, they expect to lose. Or as I've also heard it put, "They've forgotten how to win." It takes the joy out of playing. It creates a defeatist attitude. I'd hate for my son to experience that.
So, I do my best to keep things positive. I encourage him, and tell him how well he played. I cheer for him like mad, even if they lose. He'll occasionally hear me, and turn and smile, sometimes even giving me a thumbs-up. So, even if his team never wins a game or even scores a goal, he knows I'm still his fan.
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4 comments:
Poor Thurman! That's got to be hard. But at least he knows that he can always beat me at Blokus.
I played soccer for 8 years, never on a winning team on only scoring one goal the entire time (should have been two, but it was called back on a penalty). I turned out okay. Losing teaches you far more than winning... and stops hurting after a decade or so.
That is rough. Winning does help even out the disappointment of losing, but sometimes it just doesn't happen. It is good that you are there for him at the games and I imagine that's what he'll remember most.
Losing is more difficult when you are used to winning. So lucky him! :)
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