A week off for Sevvies Science Camp…. And we scrimmage with the A team. They’re much more skillful than we are. Their dribbles.. their offense.. their transitions. But in the midst from all the madness… NN pulls up and sinks a shot.
“I wanted to cry, Daddy.”
To show them… to show the coaches… that they demoted the wrong person.
In reality… we lost that scrimmage,,, but that moment…. That moment in time… nothing else mattered. She sunk a 2 ptr. It was…. Redemption.
Had the privilege, honor, and pleasure to meet for the first time (and possibly the very last time) a dear friend of a dear friend. I say... possibly last time... because this Friday... this dear friend will be given the passage to move into doggie heaven. The bible doesn't say it... and a lot of Sunday School teachings say that's what separates humans from animals. Well... in my recent study of the Hebrew bible... I beg to differ. I do believe there is a place in heaven for our pets and our minds are limiting to what God is capable of for the simple pleasure of being exclusive.
In 5 words.
Docile - He looked at me. Smelt I wasn't any danger and let me pet him. Pet him?? I was downright assaulting him!!
Companion - I sat there and just hung out. Our personal bubbles were intersected.
Chill - 泰山崩於前而色不變. With the sky as his blanket and grass as his bed, the world could be crumbling and he wouldn't care. "I'm good."
Content - I don't need surf and turf. I don't need mai-tai's or mimosa's. Gimme what I like... a treat and some popcorn and I'm happy as a clam.
Tenacious - Just because I'm old and I've lost my bark... doesn't mean I won't give you 110% to beg for my popcorn. Those puppy eyes never leave you. And it may be soft... but those barks come through loud and clear. Mmm hmm...
I didn't know you well, but I will never forget you. You brought joy into myself through a different channel by being the source of joy to people that mattered so much to me. Admittedly.. I will never have that bond with an animal - just not wired that way. But I won't second guess the unspeakable bond that truly does exist. My heart is crumbling from the pain that I feel second handed. Lord knows what the first handed pain feels like.
Oceans rise.
Empires fall.
Seasons pass.
And so will we.
This is not good-bye... my friend
For one day we shall meet again.
Came into practice today and saw one of my girls dressed in her boots and a nice skirt and cute blouse. She took a big spill yesterday... so I went over to ask, "You doing ok? Still feeling it from yesterday's fall?"
"Yeah... that. And I having my period. So I can't practice."
(PAUSE... THINK)
10 years ago... someone did the same thing at work... and I said, "Oh, I understand." Only to have two laser beam eyes incinerate my head with the roar of, "YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND!!!"
(TIME IS TICKING... SAY SOMETHING!!!)
(Quietly nod). "Glad you can still be here to support us!" (And I walked away - with head intact).
It's the worst kept secret in the world.... JH basketball... particularly 7th and 8th graders are the worst. They're easily distracted. They talk back. They challenge your authority. And they ask "Why" in everything you say (or don't say).
Head Coach Mike was busy today so I had to run practice. What a Pain in the Neck.... I felt like laying the smack down on half the girls for their attention span or insouciance. I even ripped into one of them (NN, no less).
Then.... I bump into Dorcas. She goes to our church and has a child in 12th grade. We got to talking and my words were, "I get a chance to see my daughters' friends. I get to hang out with someone who might ignore me for the next 5 years. For all the pain and agony... it's all worth it."
And indeed... it truly is.
Usually.. Christmas decorations stay up until after Epiphany.. the Roman Catholic celebration of the 3 Kings visiting Baby Jesus. Truth be told... Epiphany was January 6th.... and on February 13th... our Christmas Tree finally came down.
一年一度嘅新春晚會又告一段落。只可惜今年的質素是我在教會十幾年來最差的一次。 係唔係我比太少時間大家準備？抑或我哋用Zoom去做新春晚會已經到了盡頭。Breakout Room 仍然是一個大問題。有好多朋友根本唔識點參加Breakout Room. 但如果佢地入到Breakout Room大家都玩得好開心.
過去呢幾次網上聚會一次比一次好。但係一次又一次顯明我哋要實體聚會。
Roy put it best… 今晚的高潮是黃太瞓着咗。 heh.. how fitting.
希望中秋晚會我哋真係可以實體聚會。 打破過去呢兩年的記錄。
4th game into the season... I finally earned by stripes. I earned my official TKA Basketball Polo. Heh...
Didn't come without a price.
Blood, sweat, tears.
Going and helping out with practice at 3:15PM, almost every day, after work. Coaching a bunch of 7th and 8th grade girls. Ohhhhh boy. Not easy.
And today... I find out that the head coach will be out at our next game. So I'm gonna be coaching the team the next time. Me! Coaching! Dunno if I can do it. I'm already thinking about my pre-game and post game speech. This will not be easy. Especially after such a horrible loss today... when we collapsed. To a point where NN was stripped of being a point guard for all her turnovers... only to see none of our others players can pass a ball. I don't know if I can do it.... I don't know if THEY can do it.
All I know is... I'm living, breathing, eating basketball... every waking moment of my life.
A dear friend is now faced with the ultimate separation challenge... the day when the vet says, "We need to put him down."
The exact reason why I will never get a pet. Not the midnight walks. Not the poop picking. Not the thousand dollar salon fees. But the inevitable separation.
There's nothing I can say that will console them. There's nothing I can do that will make this be easier. I'm at a complete loss of how to "be there for a friend." And here I am... balling my eyes out... for a pet that I've never met... but means so much to me... cuz it means so much to them.
As Glinda coined it in Wicked….”because Happy is what happens when all of you’re dreams… come true.”
我今日好開心！
My dream of working at the ATC finally came true…
What a day…. What a day….
Super Sweet 小華 is at it again. Was sitting on NN's desk and found her "bookmark." The amazing thing is... he truly is NN's biggest fan.
All the encouraging words he delivers to NN. He'll ask about her basketball practice. The morning of a game.. he'll always say, "I know you guys will win." And the times when we don't win... he still says the sweetest and most encouraging things to continue to cheer NN on. Not sure where he gets in from... but I hope he doesn't ever lose it.
Three games into the season... and we are exactly where we DON'T want to be.... we're 0-3.
Practice is fun.
Basketball is fun.
But you know what's really fun...??? WINNING!!! Winning is fun!!!
And this last game.... tho we held our opponents to the lowest any other opponents have scored... for the first time.. we only scored in single digits. Grrrrr....
Basketball is hard...but yet... it's so frustrating watching the girls run around and not even make a shot attempt, let alone score. And the few times NN had the ball... was making a fast break for an uncontested lay up... she would BRICK!!!
We now have so many BRICKS... we can build a house!!
What can I do?!?!?!? How do I coach the girls to create shots and make the shots?!?!?! Back on youtube for some coaching advice.
