Everyone Gets a Trophy!

Thank the Good Lord above that the election is over!  Let's just say that I spent last night drinking and I won't mention whether it was in celebration or to drown my sorrows.  Who knows, maybe it's just because I like to drink! I'm sure you'll stay up all night wondering? In any case, I love a good a white-knuckle battle! I love the back and forth and I can humbly appreciate a close outcome no matter which side of the line I end up on.  By their very nature, "close call" elections mildly comfort the defeated by displaying their not-to-be forgotten force and humble the victors to keep from getting too comfortable.  Landslide issues rarely create new passion or evoke a sense of personal responsibility to become educated in your stance. So I'll take a good 49%/50% battle any day of the week!  And after spending the last 3 months watching Emery's soccer team (henceforth referred to as "The Lightning Storm!") be defeated with final scores like 20 to 1, 13 to 0, and 15 to -1, it's been awhile since I've sat on the edge of my seat. 

Ahhh....youth soccer; an American rite of passage!  (Honestly, I never played but it sounded like a good opening statement.) This was Emery's very first year of outdoor soccer and it seemed like an awesome idea back in June when we eagerly signed him up. Of course back in June the sun was still shining and I had no idea the commitment I was making to drag camping chairs, umbrellas, team snacks, water bottles, and Lulu with her 20 baby dolls through the mud, in the rain, at 8:00 AM on a Saturday morning. No wonder they have you pay up front! But fear not, all of my effort wasn't in vain.  While I never got to give Emery a high five for making a goal, I did see a tremendous amount of growth in his skills. I mean, at the beginning of the season he could barely make a shadow puppet that resembled a bird while standing oblivious to the game-play around him. In contrast, by the end of the season he could act out entire shadow plays!  Progress is progress, right?! Kidding aside, I spent the whole season waiting for the concept of soccer to "click" for him. Of course, it didn't happen until the very last game where I actually saw some hustle in his step and fire in his eyes!  I kept getting little thumbs-up from the field and huge smiles letting me know that he was really having fun!  Melt my mom-heart. Finally, when he ran to the sidelines for a water break the cheerleader in me bursted out as I screamed, "Emery!!! THAT. WAS. AWESOME!" to which he replied, "MOM!  Did you see that bird?!"  Huh?  It's true - there had been a seagull circling the game and apparently the "hustle in his step" was only an attempt to keep up with his winged friend. (***Side note - I do not know what it is with Schultz boys and birds!  Has anyone else ever had their husband say, "I just love birds of prey! They're so awesome!"  Is that normal?  I think I should put it out there now that if I ever get into a car wreck, you can put money down that Luke was driving, "thought he saw a hawk" and was straining his neck to see it. ***) Emery later told me that the seagull gave him magical soccer powers.  I'm now looking into hiring someone in costume for next season to bring these powers back. Is anyone looking for a job?  Small caveat, I need you to provide your own seagull costume.

The great thing about kindergarten soccer is that it doesn't matter if you make 50 goals or none.  It doesn't matter if our Lightning Storm team ever beats the Lightning Bolts team (neither of which have ever beat the Lightning Strikes team). And it doesn't matter if you spend half the game making shadow puppets or half the game shooting at the wrong goal. What does matter is that if you show up.....you get a trophy. If you bring cool goody bags on your snack week.....you make friends. And if you can corner the coach's wife at the after-season party, you can assure your son's spot on next year's team regardless of his performance. Simple rules, simple rewards, everyone wins. Could you imagine if life stayed that easy? Instead of bickering and gloating on facebook and twitter, we could just hand out participation awards and hug it out over a rainbow snow-cone. We'd know there's always a "next game" and that if we lose that one too....at least we got to enjoy some refreshing orange slices, right?!

I don't know who said it first, but I truly believe the saying, "Nothing is ever as good or bad as it seems." So I offer my congratulations to you blue folks out there, and my best wishes to you red folks! But remember we're all purple folks!  ( Wait, is that what you get when you mix red and blue? You get my point....)

Have a great week!

Stats: Goals: None. Assists: Not Sure. Shadow Puppets: 35