lessons i learned from little league

Okay, so, first I guess I should make a confession...I did not play little league but my nephews do. I've been an avid spectator for about 7 years now and even though I'm not the one playing, I think I've learned a few things. Last night both my nephews had games and I was in a sprint to make it to both games which were back to back at two different locations...no worries, though, I made it to both.

Anyway, back to things I've learned. My experience last night at Daniel's game reminded me of lessons to be learned from little league...

• Even though I am a competitor and I am not afraid to admit that I like to win...I can also admit that it is just a little league game for kids. Some of these parents are absolutely crazy and I feel sorry for their kids.
• While winning is the ultimate goal of a game, it's just the surface level goal. The real goal is to teach and develop players...with both skill for the game and character while playing the game. I have no use for coaches who don't teach and model character and good sportsmanship.
• If you show up looking sloppy and give the impression you could care less about how you represent your team on the field, then you probably feel that way. I seriously wanted to yell from my seat, "Boys, tuck your shirts in!!" but I think my nephew would have absolutely died from embarrassment so I refrained. :)
• Be nice to everyone. Period. Even if you think they don't deserve it...kindness is incredibly under-rated.
• Park your car far away from the outfield because your windshield could get smashed with a home run or a foul ball.
• While I love and adore sports, I do not adore cold weather or bugs. I have learned, however, that you will endure things you do not adore for SOMEONE that you do adore.
• Everyone loves to be cheered for and everyone deserves to have a cheering section.
• Strike outs, biased coaches, sitting on the bench are all the unpleasant elements of baseball but you can even learn something from sitting on the bench.

Okay, enough of my list. I've thought a lot since last night about what my nephews are gaining from playing baseball and then it developed into this blog. I love that my nephews play sports and are almost always good at any sport they play (no bias here ;). Last night I left the game disappointed by the outcome but then began to reflect on what could be gleaned from playing just a silly game...I think there's a lot to be learned from little league!