Football

For my writing class we were asked to write a piece  about a place. I decided to write about being at my son's  first football game.

Football

It's a beautiful May, Saturday morning.  I walk onto the field with my twelve year old son Jack.  The turf is bright green with no blemishes except the fresh white lines that outline the playing field and large white numbers stamped every ten yards along the side lines.  Two bright yellow goal posts face each other in  either end zone like colossal pitch forks. Six mammoth light posts surround the stadium, with five bulbous pot lights staring down at the scene below,  giant eyes keeping watch like sentinels.

First impressions? Impressive.  These are real teams, on a real field with real uniforms.  I felt like I was standing on the field of Friday Night Lights, very American.  Not the Canadian apology version of the sport that I was used to, but the real deal. This is serious.  I think that makes my twelve year old son very nervous.  Its his first year playing so he didn't really know what to expect.  He thought it was a "just for fun" team, but he was wrong, we both were.

Black uniform bags line the sidelines, with water bottles and clipboards littering the ground where they have been dropped.  Players mill around in groups, stretching and warming up, waiting for the whistle to blow to start the game. These are boys of all ages, economic backgrounds, races and personalities but when they have the uniform on they are a team, they are one.

Up close and personal these boys seem to be vulgar, snot spitting, crotch scratching, motherless Neanderthals, but when the coach calls "huddle up" and the whistle blows, they become a well oiled machine. For most of the people here this is their life.  The coaches eat and breath football, coaching both high school teams as well as their son sons club ball.  The players themselves prepare for their dreams of being football stars, or maybe that is the dreams of their parents.  For myself and my son, we are just trying to figure out whether we have put the padding on in the right places and its
right side up.

The team is  Mississauga Warriors - red, white, and black.  They've had a number of championship victories and from what I have seen at practice they are going for another.  I'm excited for my son to be a part of this team and once he gets over his nervous jitters and gets into the game I can tell he is excited too.  It's a lot of time and commitment  but I love seeing the smile on his face when he comes off the field bruised and disheveled but victorious because he made a good tackle.  

Favorite Quote #2

Here is a quote I heard this month in reference to Mother's Day. I thought it was pretty good.


"Life didn't come with a manual, it came with Mother's."

-unknown

Happily Ever After!

Feeling Good at Forty.

My Prince Charming turned forty last week. Wow, when did he get so old.  The fact that he has reached this milestone age doesn't seem to phase him, for which I am glad, I do not need a forty year having one of those midlife crisis' before he is even  midlife yet.  Is forty midlife yet? I can never tell these days.
I'm freaking out a little bit. If he is forty then it is a few short years until I'm forty and I'm still trying to get used to being in my thirties. Half the time I can't remember if I am 37 or still 36 turning 37. Sometimes I have to think of what year it is before I remember yes, I am already 37 and I am turning 38. Hey, when did that happen?
I think that if I wasn't content with what I have accomplished in my life up to this point then I might be a bit more panicked about my age, but looking back I am happy with who I am and what I have done with my life.  There are a few things that I hoped I could have done better. If I am really silly and compare myself to someone else I could feel inadequate in how much wealth or material possessions I have acquired. I have learned that those things are not important or worth stressing over.  I have a beautiful family, a wonderful husband, a comfortable home and I know who I am, that is a recipe for happiness and contentment.
I am proud of my husband for all that he has accomplished in and out of our home.  I am grateful that his priorities are straight.  He works hard for his family and reaches for his dreams but he puts us first and makes us a part of his every day plans.  We have lots of fun and enjoy many great adventures together that help is grow better with age.  Beside, I love the traces of grey highlighting the edges of his hairline. Forty looks good.

Making dreams come true.

I just finished a workshop on how to get published.  This is the second workshop I have signed up for from Brian Henry. He is a writer, editor and creative writing teacher in the GTA that I discovered when I found his blog http://quick-brown-fox-canada.blogspot.ca/ while searching for a writing group to join. Another workshop of his that I am taking is a creative writing class that I take every Tuesday afternoon.   I am thoroughly enjoying all I am learning.

At the  workshop on how to get published that I went to on the weekend I had a lot of my questions answered about what to expect in the publishing world, whether or not I would need an agent to get my   work looked at and how to get an agents attention.  We also were able to meet an agent named Olga Filina who further answered our questions about what agents are looking for and their job description as to what an agent does to get a writers work published.  When the  workshop was over I felt very excited, with a renewed commitment to write, write, write and complete the writing I have started.  I am realistic enough to realize that what I am writing may not be of interest to anyone but myself but I am not daunted.  In fact, this weekend has helped re-energize my hopes and dreams and a belief in the "what if".  What if I do have something others are interested in. I won't know unless I try.

I am also really enjoying my creative writing class.  We meet in a charming old church in Burlington.  There are a number of us writers that get together to encourage each other and develop our writing. I enjoy having an audience that I can share my work with and who will respond back in critical yet encouraging ways.  It is comforting to have so many comrades  who understand the challenge of putting your thoughts and feelings out there to be judged.

After the first class two weeks ago, I went away with mixed feelings.  On the one had I enjoyed the writing exercises that we did - story starters from one line sentences.
 I enjoyed hearing everyones work, but I felt daunted because there are some really talented writers in my class and I was feeling like my work was garbage.  I know this is a common feeling when comparing ones work with another's and I know that I need to use that feeling to challenge myself  to keep writing. I believe in my words and I believe in myself.  I know I can make this dream come true.
Happily Ever After!