Basketball Time is Here Again

Last night was F1’s team’s first game of the season. He was in twice, but on his second time in, was injured and so had to sit the rest of the game out. He tried to block a pass, but his fingers got in the way and he jammed his pinkie pretty good. No one noticed (except all of us moms in the stands!) so he tried to shake it off and keep playing, but it hurt too badly. Finally, he caught his coach’s attention and a time-out was called. Only moments after they got the ice pack on his fingers, another boy on our team was injured. Unfortunately, he didn’t get out of his injuries as well as F1, and he ended up with a bone in his hand broken in two places. He’ll be out the rest of the season. Whoever said that basketball is not a contact sport never watched the game much. The boys played hard, but I think that the other team was made up of not only elementary/early junior high kids, but also high schoolers. I know that one of those boys had to’ve shaved that morning (and maybe needed a refresher in the afternoon!) and several of them were big kids. They all played a good game, stealing and making about 90% of their shots. I was proud of our boys, because in spite of the fact that the other team was obviously bigger and better at the game, they really had a good attitude and tried their best. They took shots, blocked balls (as is evidenced by the two injuries), stole balls, and in general, played their best. They had an excellent attitude toward the other team; as an example, one of our boys was running up the court with the pack when he saw a boy from the other team stumble and fall. Rather than keep going, he paused to ask the boy if he was all right, and when he got a quick confirmation that all was fine, he continued to play. I was so proud of him! What an excellent example of sportsmanship and Christ-likeness. The boys did a great job, and I’m sure that they will only get better as they practice harder and learn more. I’m excited about this season!