Sports are Supposed to be Fun: Don't Let Others Ruin It for You

I coach a girls high school basketball team.

We struggled a lot at the beginning of the season because most of our players didn't start playing basketball until they got to high school while most of the kids we play against started in elementary school. Our players have a very bad habit of dribbling the ball too much and not passing enough. We keep working though, and have shown steady improvement.

Last night, something magical happened. Our passing game started working and we got easy basket after easy basket. We won the game by 28 points.

Sadly, one of the girls, Andrea, didn't play very well. She even apologized to me during a time out. I told her is was okay and to relax and have some fun. I knew, however, that she wasn't worried about me being mad at her.

You see, Andrea's dad comes to every practice and every game. During practice and games, she looks at her dad every time she touches the ball. Her dad's instructions contradict mine, for he is only thinking about what she should do, while I am trying to teach the whole team to play together. She's confused, and it shows on the court. She'll get better with time, but I'm worried that she's not having any fun.

After the game, we decided to go have dinner together. Andrea got into the car with her dad, while 6 kids piled into my minivan. Just as we were about to leave, Andrea ran over to my car.

"Will somebody ride with me?" she asked, "that way my dad won't yell at me."

I hope your parents don't treat you like that.