I fancy myself a lady and at times I can act deplorable but for some reason, recently, I don't know if it's due to my impending middle age status or just the fact I am older and less reserved but I have discovered a very unlady like trait in me. I have developed a love for violence sports. That's right. Me, Araminta Self, once peaceful beatnik Hippy child who loathed any form of violence, has surcumbed to the notion that I have a boy who is now an impending teen ager. Anyone who looks at him realizes he comes from a long line of warrior bodied, fully aggressive, battle seeking, native raw rage; simmering deep with in him. He found his Comrads and his battle of choice. Football. He is 5'9" 147 pounds of raw defensive end. He is 12. I knew nothing about football. I hated that it attracted trashy, cliche Redneckoids. I hated that I was bullied by some football players in 8th grade. I hated that many guys get injured on the field when I watched the few Super Bowls I did back in High School trying to bond with my step dad. I just could not get into the boorish blood bath sport. I liked Hockey because Hockey was not really violent, it was coreagraphed fights on ice skates; High fluten icecapade without the foo foo. And boxing was not really "senseless violence". It was more like a structured Jr. High smack down but instead of teachers breaking up a fight one is in each students' corner and the principal is refree.
Football, though, was never a sport I could come to terms with. That is, Until this year. I saw how the Jr. High foot ball coach eye googled him, and when the coach found out Eddy was not a 9th grade the disappointment was obvious but has already avowed Eddy a position on the team and plans to start him. I will learn what "start" means. I was not too keen on him playing but I have to confess,I was the one who saw the "last day for Optimist sign ups" in the Treasure Vally Family Magazine last May. I knew in my heart, I needed to let him do a sport that would help him learn team work,help him vent some of that warrior bred, instinctive need to seek out a battle and join in. I was hoping hockey would be that sport as Eddy is an avid figure skater. Alas, he wanted none of that heavy gear burden. Figure skaters wear so little ya know and going from free flowing to heavy gear was not his thing. So, you can see my surprise when he told me that he wanted to try football. I explained that I hated the sport and besides that there was a lot of gear. He did not care. And this was not about me. It was about his needs to be part of a team.
I have taken time to warm up to his sport of choice. I watched him at practice yesterday. I actually found myself, both enjoying watching him tackle his teammates; throwing them around like rag dolls AND fighting the urge to yell after him to be nice to those boys!
I will study football and learn to appreciate it. I still prefer Hocky but Football is his thing. Hmmm... Maybe I could create a whole new sport. Part football part Hocky, part Baseball. Oh, wait, that is called lacrosse!!! Hay, maybe Eddy will play that one day!
I could learn to live with that.
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