Besides scrapping, and maybe taking pictures, coaching is one of my passions. I absolutely love it! I love seeing the girls in 6th grade figure things out until in 8th grade they're really getting the hang of it. I also love that I feel like I'm making a difference. Coaching is way different than teaching---it's so much better! I connect with the girls, I'm able to share with them, and some of them open up to me--those that can appreciate my sacastic sense of humor that is. But I really try to pour my life into these girls for the 2.5 months that I have them. We struggle together, we win together, but more than that we talk non-volleyball too. I mean let's face it, middle school volleyball is not the life shattering event that will sculpt them and change them forever. BUT it's the relationships with their teammates and hopefully their coach that will last a long time. I can't tell you how much my girls (my big girls, not my 2 little ones) mean to me. I've got girls from broken homes, blended families, "normal" ones too....and for some volleyball is their solice. I have one player who lost her mom about 4 yrs ago. I was teaching her in Elem. school then, and when I went to funeral and saw her lay her head on her daddy's lap, I just weeped, and vowed to myself that I'd minister to that kid. She's so precious and has come such a long way---she's now the captain of my team. Her mom would be sooooo proud of her! And I'm crying as I type because of what a great kid she is, and the thought of all the great kids I coach, and then not getting to do it anymore. Ugh! It just tugs at my heart.
For me, volleyball is more than a sport, a coaching job, it's my out reach. It's my time to pour into young girls the way that other influential people have poured into me. And it kills to me to know that it may all be coming to an end. My own girls are getting to be too much for me to handle when they're in the gym with me. They just get in the way. Practice can't run efficiently with them there. And then they don't really pay me enough to even afford a babysitter, much less the gas money it'll take to get to all the games this year. So, it looks like it's a lost cause. Somehow I'll survive this season. I'm determined to. But to know that it's probably the last just breaks my heart.
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On a much lighter and happier note, Simply Obsessed posted their kit for September, and it is GAWGEOUS! (that's my Southern accent girls!) It's full of brand new October Afternoon papers, with a little dash of some Fancy Pants and a sprinkle of Jenni Bowlin in there too! I may say this every time, but I can't WAIT to get my hands on this kit! I've already pulled pictures for it and everything! :D I can't wait, can't wait, can't wait!!!
3 comments:
Hoping you find a good sitter quickly!! I appreciate your passion for coaching!! Middle school can be a tough time and it is good that those girls have you!!
Oh, D, if I lived closer I would bring my boys over so that we could watch the girls while you coached. Dougie would love to play with C and SK! He is my big teddy bear.
I can't begin to tell you the difference that 3 special teachers had in my life. Their encouragement helped me through high school.
As for volleyball, it is THEE sport to be in while in middle school. If you know what I mean! Personally, it isn't my sport. When I played, I usually hit the ball behind me instead of up and over the net. Nope, not for me.
It takes someone truly passionate to coach Deanna and that person is you. Im glad you found a sitter.
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