Keeping Perspective June 21, 2008
Posted by carpebanana in : Bananalets , trackbackMr Music and his Little League team are now into the playoffs. Today’s game is Sudden Death. I must be over-sensitive, but I just don’t like applying that name to something involving my baby.
This season has had some highlights. One surprising one has been my favorite ump, the Dad who is in charge of the whole operation. He does it just like a real ump, with the arm motions and even screams “STEEEEEEEE-RIIIIIKE” in such a way that I am sure the young batters are consoled that even though the struck, they are playing with professionals, not a bunch of little kids.
Mr Music’s team has the world’s most relaxed, positive coaches. By now I am convinced that even if I were out there, they would be able to find something good to say about every play I make, probably even more positive than, “Look at that! She swung the bat and no one got killed. Way to go!” “What a play! Look at the way she hardly ducked when the ball came to her glove!”
Thursday night some of the players were getting a bit upset as it looked as if they would lose (and they did 
). Coach Doug started saying, “Win or lose it’s OK. Tomorrow morning it won’t matter.” I wasn’t too sure this would go anywhere, till he added the master stroke, “and whether we win or lose, we still get our snack after the game.” The calming effect the thought of food (pizza! hot dogs! sugar!) had on these 9 to 11 year olds was amazing. Mental notes to self: remind math-test-takers that dinner is coming. Keep the good smells coming from the oven and the crock-pot on rough school days. And what would happen if I corrected tests with red ink declaring, “You did one amazing job on this test! Look at the play you made on that word problem! Saxon just pitched one division fact ahead of you is all. You went down writing and that’s what we want to see,” and then it seems you have to rub the top of the player’s head.
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I need a coach too.