My son S-bop is 12 and in 7th grade this year. He decided he wanted to play football last year and asked me to sign him up for this year. I try to be supportive of my children but I truly didn’t want him to play. He is a regular-sized boy for his age and rather on the skinny side. He was a preemie and though he long ago caught up I still think sometimes being a preemie affects his stamina to this day. I was afraid he would get hurt too.

Mercury Man insisted that he be allowed to play and S-bop wanted to so badly, I didn’t have the heart to say no. I felt like I would be holding him back or hurting him emotionally if I didn’t allow him to play. But it hurt my heart at first, I couldn’t even go to the first practices in the summer.

Then I finally went to see his team practicing and it was fine! He looked so happy and confident on the field. It totally allayed my fears to see him out there, handling his own. He has had 3 games so far, last night his team won their first game!! They lost by a lot their first two games so they were super happy yesterday.

Oh this will make you laugh: at the parent football orientation in the summer we met all the coaches, went over the rules and expectations and stuff, then they had the head of the Fathers Football Club tell us about what they do. He made the club seem so exciting and fun! Basically the fathers and their sons meet one weeknight a week at rotating houses, they order pizza, watch a game, just hang out and have fun. He made it seem like such a party! I raised my hand to ask if there was a mother’s club, right. Then he said I see a lot of moms here, so let me tell you there is a Mothers club too! You get to make all the food for the junior high and high school teams before their games, and bake stuff for the parties, and do the general clean-up! He actually said this!!! My hand went down so fast, LOL!! I looked around at the other women there, and they were all rolling their eyes and cracking up!

I didn’t get a chance to speak to the guy but I did talk with some other moms, none of who joined the Mother’s club yet, but from what they tell me this is tradition and they won’t change it. We will see about that! I don’t know why the Mother’s Football Club can’t be fun too. Cooking and cleaning, you have got to be kidding me, sheesh.

We live in a small town and high school football is big here, a lot of people go to the games and are really excited about them; put signs in their yard and there is always a big write-up in the little local paper. S-bop is only in junior high but already he’s getting recognition from people around the neighborhood who saw him riding his bike in his uniform or at a game. The high school team hasn’t had their first home game yet but when they do they are going to let the junior high team come and run into the field with them. I think that is so cute!! and the little junior high cheerleaders get to cheer the whole game with the big girls.

I am also finally starting to understand football. Not my dad, my brothers, my male cousins, or even Mercury Man could ever explain this game to me. It was like this willful part of my brain refused to even listen, ’cause I could never grasp the rules of the game or what it meant. I would watch a game thinking I understood it and then they’d blow the whistle and say 1st and 10! or 7th and down! or whatever, and I’d be all, What??? LOL! But now that S-bop is into football I really really want to understand this game, and I’m slowly getting it. When we’re at the games I ask Mercury Man or my FIL to explain a play. You would think this would irritate them but no, they love talking about this stuff! I can’t believe how excited they get over football.

The head coach says S-bop is a good player and shows a lot of potential. He is a good coach, he makes sure every boy on the team gets to play and he explains what they need to work on to improve. He is no-nonsense and old-school about discipline though, he will get right in their faces yelling if they act up and makes them do push-ups or run a million times up and down the field. S-bop finds this all enthralling, ha. I don’t get it but I am so happy my son is learning and enjoying himself!

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