Last year we won one game. Out of sixteen.

Ouch.

But it’s not about wins. At least that’s what a good coach will tell you. It’s about coming together as a team that makes the experience so rich.

For the second year in a row, I’m the head coach of my daughter’s soccer team, The Little Lake Grange Penguins. And I’ve never had so much fun!

It’s not because we’ve won our first five games of the season, but because I get to shape the experience of being a part of a team for these five, six, and seven-year olds. The lessons learned, the camaraderie, and the fun are special treats that come with playing on a soccer team.

Part of the appeal is that when I was six my life was well, like many of my friends, unstable. But I could always count on sports and my teammates to be there for me. Some of my teams were terrible. Others were great. But it was always fun and a way to experience being a part of something bigger than myself. My teammates counted on me to do my best. And I counted on them to do the same. And over time, we developed trust and respect for each other.

I was active in organized soccer, basketball, and baseball from six through eighteen so this team stuff was a huge part of my life. In fact, I remember my last basketball practice as a senior in high school as one of saddest days of my life. Leaving the gym for the last time I was emotionally destroyed. Basketball was a consistent presence Monday through Friday, 3:30 – 5:30, October through February for four years. Summers too.

It was a group of guys working toward a common goal and just trying to get better. And to say goodbye (as there weren’t any college basketball scholarships being thrown my way) was more than just not playing a game anymore, but it was saying goodbye to the steady presence of tribe. [Read more…]