Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Soccer Tuesday

Today my children are starting soccer. My sweet little twin angels are venturing into the wide, wide world of organized sports. I have to say, I am feeling kind of unsure about the whole thing. When Lucas was three years old, I excitedly signed him up for soccer at our local community center. We went to the first practice and I spent a solid hour begging him to participate...to no avail. He did not like the idea of "sharing" the ball. He repeatedly picked up the ball, hugged it to his chest, and yelled a terse "Mine!" at his teammates. Apparently, team sports were simply not his forte.

I want to have faith that Sophie and Nicholas are better equipped for team sports. After all, Lucas was an only child at the time and "mine" was his go-to phrase for everything. Unfortunately, try as I might, I an not feeling entirely optimistic about this venture. Sophie is my athlete...really the only shot I've got at having an athlete in the family. She is tall and lean and limber and quick. She is competitive and somewhat aggressive...in a good way. She moves like an athlete. And she has a desire to play sports. When you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, she says she wants to be a soccer star. Never mind that she has no clue how to play soccer. I suspect that she could really excel in sports. My only concern is that she is extremely shy when she is around people she does not know. She is the child that will leave the playground equipment at the park and frantically run to me if another child approaches the slide. She is the child that flat-out refuses to speak to other children. She is the child that flashes a hostile stare at the cashier at Target when she comments that Sophie has a pretty dress. She is my sweet little antisocial angel. Unfortunately, antisocialism is pretty much anathema to team sports, right?

Nicholas, on the other hand, is not at all antisocial. He will talk until he is blue in the face to absolutely anyone willing to listen. He instantly loves everyone. If you smile at him and give him a little tickle, you will have his undying affection for life. He is the epitome of the "people person." For that reason, I am hoping that team sports may be right up his alley. However, again, I am a tad bit pessimistic. Nicholas really does not have an athletic bone in his body. He is this tiny little frail-looking creature. Given the option, he would sit indoors and play computer games all day. He is obsessed with the Wii and all things Mario. He is easily frustrated. When things do not go as he imagines they should, he is prone to dissolving into tears...huge, pitiful, crocodile tears. He is very "in touch" with his emotions and will readily let you know when you have hurt his feelings. Initially, I only signed Sophie up for soccer. Nicholas was pretty adamant that he had no desire to play. However, since Nicholas would have to accompany me to Sophie's soccer practices, I thought it made perfect sense to sign him up as well. I am doubting that decision today. I envision him laying on the soccer field, curled up in the fetal position, crying hysterically and reciting a diatribe about how the opposite team hurt his feelings and destroyed his very soul when they stole the ball from him.

Hmmmm....this soccer thing could get ugly.

1 comments:

Jessica said...

Best of luck. Can't wait to hear how it goes.

If things don't pan out, have you pondered individual sports for Sophie? Tennis or swimming perhaps?

I think your kids might just surprise you. :)

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