Saturday, January 23, 2010

On Being a Tad Bit Over-Competitive....

Well, I do not usually blog on Saturdays...but the events of the day have been so unsettling that I am forced to put it on paper.....As they say on '24'...".the following events took place within a 6 hour period"...

I admit to being a little ashamed of myself this morning. Little One had a basketball game. Now, let me preface this by saying that we (The Husband is the coach, I am the assistant something or other) have not lost a game in 2 years. I go around saying how it is not important if you win or lose, you just have to play your best and be gracious.....Well, little miss goody-goody got her ego and her pants beat today, and if truth be told, all grace flew out the window....

The game started out pretty well. We went up a few points, and it looked like we would again be victorious. But by the second period, things had taken a bad turn. We missed about 22 shots in a row, and all of a sudden, we were behind. Well, you know how some people start blaming the ref and yelling and stuff and it is so distasteful?.....It was like an alien took over my body and I started yelling at the ref. The Husband was screaming at the top of his lungs (this is not unusual)...and I was just so angry. All of a sudden, I heard one of my sweet little players yell at the ref too, and I was thrust back into reality. What the heck was I doing? Well, the game ended with us losing by a few points. There were a few tears (thankfully not mine), but we rallied enough to congratulate the other team. I will admit to gritting my teeth while I did this. On our way out of the gym, a friend as much as told us that "it's probably good that you loss...a good lesson."....Now I love this friend...but I almost punched her in the face. I almost said, "You are only saying that because we clobbered your team last week"...but I held my tongue....

Once we got home, I lectured myself on my bad behavior, and got ready to go to The Boy's game. Big Sis and SIL were travelling down to go too, and I was determined to have a good attitude. I was determined to get my hypocrisy in order. I needed to be a good role model to the kids.

As The Boy's game started, it was obvious that his team was the better team. The Boy was playing well, and I was good-naturedly cheering him on. At one point, a little boy on the opposing team travelled, and I said quietly to myself "Oops, I think he travelled".......All of a sudden, an older lady turned around and said "WELL YOUR TEAM IS DOING STUFF TOO, SO IT'S EVEN"......I was so taken aback that I literally turned around to look behind me to see who she was talking to. But when I saw the look on Big Sis's face (and SIL'S), I knew it was me!! Now The Husband, over-hearing this exchange, began to make fun of me. So I hushed......UNTIL...the lady yelled at The Boy for "going over our backs"............Well, that did it. The gloves came off. First of all, The Boy was doing no such thing. Secondly, and you will have to excuse me for saying this, but she was just mad because The Boy was killing them. And thirdly....the mother hen came out in me. Now I promise I was not rude or ugly...but I may have been a little overly vocal in my support of The Boy from then on. The Husband was laughing and so was Big Sis. I am usually the quiet on at these events....but hey, we all have our days....

As I reflect on these events, I come up with a few conclusions. My sweet mom was THE most competitive person on the face of the earth. I always thought that her boldness was responsible for my shyness. But I have learned that deep down, the apples do not fall far from the trees...

So today, I will make a promise to myself that I will never again yell at a ref......I will never again grit my teeth while I congratulate the other team....BUT I WILL NOT LISTEN TO ANYONE YELL AT THE BOY.......the end...

Until tomorrow, when thankfully, there are no more games.....

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