Tuesday, November 3, 2009

All good things must come to an end...


The greatest accomplishment is not in never falling, but in rising again after you fall.

-- Vince Lombardi




Unfortunately our football season has come to an abrupt end. After an undefeated season and earning a spot in the playoffs, we lost our first game. It was truly heartbreaking. I had a difficult time holding back the tears as the game was coming to an end, and it was clear we were going to lose. The boys worked so hard, it just didn't seem fair. They really did deserve to go further than they did.

After the game the team gathered at the end of the field, as we always did. Several of the boys were crying, which broke my heart. The coaches gave them a nice talk, and we ended with a parent cheer.

I walked over to give Zach a hug. "Hang on mom" he said, then proceeded to go up to each of his coaches and shook their hands, thanking them for the season. I was so proud of him. At this point several of the opposing team players were walking by. A couple of the boys came up to our boys to shake their hands. Zach held his head high, shook their hands and wished them good luck. He even sought out a couple of their players to shake their hands. That was when I started crying. Zach showed a level of maturity and class that I frequently see lacking in today's professional athletes. I couldn't have been more proud of him.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

He is a great son and grandson I am also very proud! Love Mom

Suzanne said...

Wow! Now that is incredible sportsmanship.

Laura said...

oh wow, yeah...I have been there...so hard to see the boys cry...and really hard whne they deserved to go farther..but such is sports...and life...

your son handled it so beautifully
screw the score
that kid IS a winner