N’s first soccer game was Saturday. I have to admit, I was nervous before the game. Nervous about another kid stealing the ball from N and N deciding to slug him. With a 4-year-old boy, anything was possible. I was crying within the first quarter. Not because of any of the scenarios I had imagined as possibilities before the game but because he had scored the first goal!
He scored one more before the game was over. But, that’s not what made me the proudest. I was even more proud when N was about to score a 3rd goal and the goalie (a girl) bent down to intercept the ball as his foot was about to kick. Images of a bloody nose flashed through my mind, I mean, I know how aggressive he is. I’ve seen it first hand with his little sister as the victim! Instead of finishing the kick, he backed off and let her pick up the ball. Shock. Relief. I think this soccer thing is gonna be fun.
I was proud when N scored 2 goals. I was even more proud when he luckily decided to pause instead of smashing the goalie’s face in. But, the thing that made me proudest was watching 4-year-old sportsmanship. N fell down. A girl on his team turned back from the pack following the ball to help him up. A boy from the other team also helped him up. You could see the delight on his face that they had stopped to help him. After the game, instead of getting his snack, he wanted to go straight to the other team to thank the boy who had helped him up. He looked each kid in the face until he found the right one and then gave him a hug and told him thanks.
When the game was over, snacks were packed up and everyone started to disperse, N stood in the middle of the field looking at his coach. He wanted to know if they were going to play again. We let the coach break the news that he would have to wait until next Saturday. The countdown has begun. N is going to learn the days of the week or I’m gonna go crazy!
