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Monday, December 6, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Glimmer
So, "glimmer". Why am I writing a post about it? As I was reading through emails and Facebook posts this morning, this word "glimmer" just came to mind. As I continued to read, my mind began to wander, and I began to ponder what it means to glimmer. By definition, to glimmer is to shine with a faint light - the kind of light from a candle. A glimmer can also be a flash of light or the faint hope or possibility of something. Gleam, on the other hand, means to shine brightly like a star or a light. I don't think I wan to gleam, as I prefer not to be in the spotlight, but I would like to be a glimmer of light to those around me.
So, do I glimmer? Do I shine? Am I a flash of light, a faint hope, or a possibility of something to come to those around me? I hope so. I want to shine - to be a good wife and mother, to be good at my job, to be a good friend, daughter, co-worker, servant, etc. - but I don't like to be the center of attention. Now that does not always mean that I want to be on the sidelines or that I'm not occasionally envious of those in the limelight - after all, I am a bit competitive, and there have been a few times in my life when I have gleamed. But for the most part, I prefer to glimmer. I would rather be working/observing away from the forefront. This is more my comfort zone.
I hope that I glimmer. I hope that I am a faint light of hope and possibilities to those around me. I hope that I glimmer brightly enough to be noticed and to catch the attention of others in a positive way. Brightly enough to make a difference, but not so bright that it becomes all about me. I want to be a hope or a possibility of something to come for those seeking God, love, comfort, peace, companionship, friendship, answers, prayer, ... and more. I think I have more to ponder on this thought, on this notion of "glimmering", and I am excited to see what I will discover.
So, do I glimmer? Do I shine? Am I a flash of light, a faint hope, or a possibility of something to come to those around me? I hope so. I want to shine - to be a good wife and mother, to be good at my job, to be a good friend, daughter, co-worker, servant, etc. - but I don't like to be the center of attention. Now that does not always mean that I want to be on the sidelines or that I'm not occasionally envious of those in the limelight - after all, I am a bit competitive, and there have been a few times in my life when I have gleamed. But for the most part, I prefer to glimmer. I would rather be working/observing away from the forefront. This is more my comfort zone.
I hope that I glimmer. I hope that I am a faint light of hope and possibilities to those around me. I hope that I glimmer brightly enough to be noticed and to catch the attention of others in a positive way. Brightly enough to make a difference, but not so bright that it becomes all about me. I want to be a hope or a possibility of something to come for those seeking God, love, comfort, peace, companionship, friendship, answers, prayer, ... and more. I think I have more to ponder on this thought, on this notion of "glimmering", and I am excited to see what I will discover.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
St. Louis Lacrosse Tournament
We spent the weekend in St. Louis, Missouri for our very first out of town Lacrosse Tournament. We left on Thursday evening and drove to Joplin, Missouri, which is just across the Oklahoma/Missouri border. On Friday, we drove from Joplin to St. Louis, and arrived early evening. We
stayed at the Sheraton Westport Chalet. A shopping/restaurant mall surrounded the hotel. This was great because we were able to select from a variety of restaurants at which to eat during our stay. Unfortunately, all of the shops have closed due to the downturn in the economy, but we were able to find a small magazine/newspaper shop to browse through one evening before dinner.
Saturday morning we started bright and early. We grabbed some breakfast at Starbucks and then headed to the Sportport fields for the lacrosse tournament. Frisco Lacrosse set up "camp" next to field 1, as most of our teams played a couple of games on field 1 on Saturday. Right out of the box, we have to play our own Frisco Bears Blue team. We won the game and moved forward. We played a team from Metro Lacrosse out of St. Louis and won the game handily. Because the score was rather run up during that game, we decided that if we played them again, the boys would play positions they don't typically play and play the game with their opposite hand. So, defensive players would play offense, offensive players would play defense, right handed kids would play the whole game left handed, and lots of kids would play with long sticks.
Before our rematch with Metro, we played a select team out of Kansas City, Kansas. It was an extremely exciting game. Our boys went head to head with them and battled for goals. In the end, we came out on top. Their team and parents were stunned; from inception, this team had never lost a game. That is, until they met the Frisco Bears Black team! We faced Metro for the second time in the semi-final round. Our boys played opposite/new positions and played with their opposite hand throughout the game. We won again, without much of a contest, and the boys felt great about not beating this team into the group, and they were happy that Metro scored one goal on them because they heard that they had never scored before. I was proud that our coach taught the boys a great lesson during that game. A lesson about being good sports, a lesson much larger than sports at all, a lesson in humanity and kindness.
We met the select team from Kansas City in the finals, and once again, we walked off the field victorious. The boys were thrilled to have won the St. Louis Gold Cup, and we were all so proud of them. Each player received a gold medal, and Connor received a special honor from Coach Joe and Coach Mark. They honored him with a large bucket of ice water being poured over his head. At first, he stood immobile, but then, he began to move and when he did, he began to swing. He may have been cold for a second when the ice water hit him, but he was boiling with anger now. His temper flaired and he was out to attack Coach Joe. I struggled to grab hold of him and stop him as he lunged into Joe and continued swinging his fists toward him. Joe managed to stay clear, and I finally got my hands on Connor enough to stop him and eventually calm him. Wow! Not quite the reaction you want your son to have.
It took a few moments to settle him and to convince him that Coach Joe and Coach Mark had honored him with the ice water bath. I gave several examples, explained that they had dumped water on their own coach, etc., but it took him a while to calm his temper so that he could listen and understand. In the end, he apologized to Coach Joe and they made peace, and now he knows that they were honoring him and not picking on him. No one has dumped a bucket of water on him again, but if it happens again, I hope that Connor remembers that it is an honor and that he realizes that it is a special tribute him as a player.
Before our rematch with Metro, we played a select team out of Kansas City, Kansas. It was an extremely exciting game. Our boys went head to head with them and battled for goals. In the end, we came out on top. Their team and parents were stunned; from inception, this team had never lost a game. That is, until they met the Frisco Bears Black team! We faced Metro for the second time in the semi-final round. Our boys played opposite/new positions and played with their opposite hand throughout the game. We won again, without much of a contest, and the boys felt great about not beating this team into the group, and they were happy that Metro scored one goal on them because they heard that they had never scored before. I was proud that our coach taught the boys a great lesson during that game. A lesson about being good sports, a lesson much larger than sports at all, a lesson in humanity and kindness.
We met the select team from Kansas City in the finals, and once again, we walked off the field victorious. The boys were thrilled to have won the St. Louis Gold Cup, and we were all so proud of them. Each player received a gold medal, and Connor received a special honor from Coach Joe and Coach Mark. They honored him with a large bucket of ice water being poured over his head. At first, he stood immobile, but then, he began to move and when he did, he began to swing. He may have been cold for a second when the ice water hit him, but he was boiling with anger now. His temper flaired and he was out to attack Coach Joe. I struggled to grab hold of him and stop him as he lunged into Joe and continued swinging his fists toward him. Joe managed to stay clear, and I finally got my hands on Connor enough to stop him and eventually calm him. Wow! Not quite the reaction you want your son to have.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Long Time No Blogging
Wow! I just pulled up my blog, and I cannot believe that it has been so long since I last blogged. Life has been rather busy, but I am a bit sad that I cannot review the past several months on my blog. I am going to do my best to recommit myself to blogging about our events.
We have just entered soccer and lacrosse season, so there will be lots of sporting events to blog about. Hopefully I will have other things to blog about, as well, but ... at least these sports give me a place a get started as I recommit myself to blogging. Soccer season is starting off a bit rough. The team that we had been on forever dissolved this season, so we have 3 boys from our original team, 2 boys from another dissolved team, and then 7 other boys ... 3 of which have never played soccer before in their lives. Yikes! So, since they boys don't know each other, they have only had 3 practices (none of which have included all 12 team members), and 3 boys don't even know the game, the season has started off a bit rough. The first game we lost a lot to 2. The second game we lost 5-2, I think. So, we are improving a bit. Connor has scored a goal in each game, so he is bugging Blake for his $20.00 ($10/goal).
The first half of today's game was awful. We had no one playing defense. A couple of our forwards were dropping back and trying to play defense part of the time because the defensive players were not staying back in a defensive position. At halftime, the boys sat on the field with the coach. Evidently they talked a lot about defense because they were a different team the second half. The defensive boys were actually back helping Connor (the goalie) defend the goal. It was a great change! Last week, it was Connor alone in the goal with 2-3 boys from the other team on attack. Poor Connor was not able to be the entire defensive line. Today, during the second half, Connor had a lot more help defending his goal, and he only allowed one ball to slip out of his hands and into the net. Way to go Connor! Hopefully next week's game will be better!
Lacrosse, on the other hand, is starting off on top! We won our first game by a landslide against Castle Hills White. Last night, we beat Parish 10-3, I believe. The boys have been on fire! They are passing well, catching more passes, winning face offs, attacking, holding their positions, making shots on goal, and taking control of the game. We are very proud of our Frisco Bears Black team and all that they are accomplishing on the lacrosse field.
We have just entered soccer and lacrosse season, so there will be lots of sporting events to blog about. Hopefully I will have other things to blog about, as well, but ... at least these sports give me a place a get started as I recommit myself to blogging. Soccer season is starting off a bit rough. The team that we had been on forever dissolved this season, so we have 3 boys from our original team, 2 boys from another dissolved team, and then 7 other boys ... 3 of which have never played soccer before in their lives. Yikes! So, since they boys don't know each other, they have only had 3 practices (none of which have included all 12 team members), and 3 boys don't even know the game, the season has started off a bit rough. The first game we lost a lot to 2. The second game we lost 5-2, I think. So, we are improving a bit. Connor has scored a goal in each game, so he is bugging Blake for his $20.00 ($10/goal).
The first half of today's game was awful. We had no one playing defense. A couple of our forwards were dropping back and trying to play defense part of the time because the defensive players were not staying back in a defensive position. At halftime, the boys sat on the field with the coach. Evidently they talked a lot about defense because they were a different team the second half. The defensive boys were actually back helping Connor (the goalie) defend the goal. It was a great change! Last week, it was Connor alone in the goal with 2-3 boys from the other team on attack. Poor Connor was not able to be the entire defensive line. Today, during the second half, Connor had a lot more help defending his goal, and he only allowed one ball to slip out of his hands and into the net. Way to go Connor! Hopefully next week's game will be better!
Lacrosse, on the other hand, is starting off on top! We won our first game by a landslide against Castle Hills White. Last night, we beat Parish 10-3, I believe. The boys have been on fire! They are passing well, catching more passes, winning face offs, attacking, holding their positions, making shots on goal, and taking control of the game. We are very proud of our Frisco Bears Black team and all that they are accomplishing on the lacrosse field.
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