An Open Letter from a Silver Star!
I did not play well in Fridays’ game and at the end of it I just wanted to lie down and cry…Ok! Ok! So I did cry, a little…maybe more than a little. I was heartbroken. I did not play well, I dropped the ball! I did, not once, not twice but several times. What was I doing? What was I thinking?
I was well-prepared. I had drank my half a gallon of water every day for several days. I had practised, I had read “Chicken nuggets for the Stars”, I had dreamt of a great game. So here we were in the tournament that we had all anticipated and trained for. I had played the whole game in my mind several times. I missed easy shots, I let them steal the ball right from under me…ok! Maybe that is “over me”. They were so tall. Wasn't this the “Under 13’s”. Why are they so tall? Anyways, here they were wreaking havoc in my well-thought out plans to win every game in this tournament.
I am the one who steals the ball from under every unsuspecting player. It is I who shoots hoops at a hundred miles an hour. It is our team that has developed steals, blocks and three-pointers that are a coach’s dream. We are electrifying. We are unbeatable. Lightening is our speed and star-quality is our performance. Our feet dance on the court and our hearts beat to the music of the hoops . We are unstoppable, we are capable and we love this game unconditionally. Win or lose a game here and there, we love this game.
So, we should have won all five games, but as I think about it…something dawns on me. The tournament was a meeting point for the best teams. THE BEST TEAMS!!! To play here we must be rated among the very best in our league. There were players who outwitted us, executed their positions with a precision that even I felt admiration for. Then there was the player who had so many steals and that was her little niche. She was good. I learnt a couple of things from her. I learnt enough to not let anyone steal any more of my balls. In fact I learnt how to perfect the art of steals myself. I like that. Yes, I do.
Would you believe there was this player whose sole purpose in playing this weekend was to continually shoot three-pointers from the center? Where did she learn that? That was something. Hey, ok! It was brilliant! Excuse me for not being subjective, I am just stating facts here. You know, I don’t believe she was born doing that so with practice I can do that and shock her Coach (and perhaps my Coach too) at the next tournament. In fact, look out for my three-pointers in a couple of weeks.
Now that I have calmed down, I get it: the other teams against whom we did not win raised the bar. Much as I would like for us to win in every match I think it would take the challenge out of the game. We needed to play smarter, move faster, anticipate their moves more diligently, follow Coach’s instructions and training more fully. They raised the bar, so we must aspire to be even better players. They raised the bar so therefore we, in rising to their challenge, shall have raised our own standard.
“Genius is divine perseverance!” God’s Little Devotional Book for Leaders
“…having done all, to stand. Stand therefore…” Ephesians 6:13-14
I was well-prepared. I had drank my half a gallon of water every day for several days. I had practised, I had read “Chicken nuggets for the Stars”, I had dreamt of a great game. So here we were in the tournament that we had all anticipated and trained for. I had played the whole game in my mind several times. I missed easy shots, I let them steal the ball right from under me…ok! Maybe that is “over me”. They were so tall. Wasn't this the “Under 13’s”. Why are they so tall? Anyways, here they were wreaking havoc in my well-thought out plans to win every game in this tournament.
I am the one who steals the ball from under every unsuspecting player. It is I who shoots hoops at a hundred miles an hour. It is our team that has developed steals, blocks and three-pointers that are a coach’s dream. We are electrifying. We are unbeatable. Lightening is our speed and star-quality is our performance. Our feet dance on the court and our hearts beat to the music of the hoops . We are unstoppable, we are capable and we love this game unconditionally. Win or lose a game here and there, we love this game.
So, we should have won all five games, but as I think about it…something dawns on me. The tournament was a meeting point for the best teams. THE BEST TEAMS!!! To play here we must be rated among the very best in our league. There were players who outwitted us, executed their positions with a precision that even I felt admiration for. Then there was the player who had so many steals and that was her little niche. She was good. I learnt a couple of things from her. I learnt enough to not let anyone steal any more of my balls. In fact I learnt how to perfect the art of steals myself. I like that. Yes, I do.
Would you believe there was this player whose sole purpose in playing this weekend was to continually shoot three-pointers from the center? Where did she learn that? That was something. Hey, ok! It was brilliant! Excuse me for not being subjective, I am just stating facts here. You know, I don’t believe she was born doing that so with practice I can do that and shock her Coach (and perhaps my Coach too) at the next tournament. In fact, look out for my three-pointers in a couple of weeks.
Now that I have calmed down, I get it: the other teams against whom we did not win raised the bar. Much as I would like for us to win in every match I think it would take the challenge out of the game. We needed to play smarter, move faster, anticipate their moves more diligently, follow Coach’s instructions and training more fully. They raised the bar, so we must aspire to be even better players. They raised the bar so therefore we, in rising to their challenge, shall have raised our own standard.
“Genius is divine perseverance!” God’s Little Devotional Book for Leaders
“…having done all, to stand. Stand therefore…” Ephesians 6:13-14
posted by zinzi @ 5:51 PM
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