I am a educator. I am the coach. I am the umpire. I am human. I do make mistakes. I observe you as parents and players, and from what I see and hear I form an oppinion of you and your child. This is natural, we all do it. This is what being human is all about.
I stand on the sideline and hear and see most of what goes on around me. I hear you as parent shout for your child’s team to win. I also enjoy your friend shouting to cheer you on. I still to this day, find it amazing to see how people and players from all walks of life can bind together in a team. And when the victory is yours I am celebrating in the quiet with you, but at the same time I am sad because for you to have won, someone had to lose.
Why then do you as parents and players start swearing, shouting & use profanities when things are not going well? Why then do I have to stand on the sideline and hear “take her out”, “write her off” or “use your elbow”? This is not nice. What has happened to the cheers of earlier, what happened to the “come on try harder”? And then the best one of course “can the umpire not open his/her eyes”.
I you are better than me, please by all means take the whistle and come and umpire the game with me, and maybe I can learn from you. If you are not sure ask and I will gladly explain the rule and my decision to you.
May questions are the following:
a) What did you teach your child, that winning is everything and that there is no place for losers?
b) If you lost, blame the umpire?
c) That if your training was not good enough, to start playing dirty?
d) That swearing and cursing at the opposing team and/or umpire is accepted?
e) How clear is your conscience when you go to bed tonight?
I might not be rich, and I might not be teaching at a privileged school, but all the money in the world cannot buy you respect, class and manners. My coaches and players know that once the final whistle blows for a mach, and irrespective if they won or lost, they will always first shake hands. Now how much did it cost them to do that? Nothing. What will it cost you to do the same? Nothing.
I have one request for 2009, please let’s respect one another next to the courts, let’s play the game and not the person and if we have nothing nice to say, let’s rather keep quiet.
2 comments:
It is always the umpires fault, because of you my childs team lost. Why are you trying to excuse your decitions before hand???
Maybe you are just not good enough to begin with.
People like you Anonymous are loosers, and have been all your life. You want to be seen through your child. Remember, people do see you for what you are. They know who you are. And you are to afraid to give your real name because you are a back stabber. One day friendly with the umpire and the other day like this!!! I dont just talk about you in general, but to so many mommies out there who does exactly the same. Just remember, we know who you are!
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