Prouder than Ever

The hot summer sun beat down relentlessly as I stretched before our final game of the season. Kick off would be at 6:30 PM, before the sun had set, and we would play the first half in the scorching heat. Surprisingly, over the course of the summer this had come to bother me less. I won’t say I love the prospect of playing soccer when it’s 95 or 100+ outside, but I’d gotten somewhat used to it. For this game we had only four women available, meaning we would have to play short-handed, and that all four of us women would have to play the entire game. I actually looked forward to it. At the beginning of the summer I would not have been able to play an entire game. Now, after an entire season, my fitness had increased to where I could, though my energy would certainly be flagging by the end of the game.

We lost that game, as we had the previous nine we played. Some would find this incredibly discouraging. Honestly, earlier in my life I too would have been deeply frustrated by that statistic.  No longer. Not with this team. Not with my new perspective on life. Life is about so much more than winning. It’s about community, about supporting and encouraging one another, about giving our best in the situation, whatever our best may be at that moment. It’s about affirming that we are enough as we are and that our worth as people doesn’t depend on our skill level or our ability to win games.

I participated in something beautiful playing with the Fierce Pride. I saw myself and my teammates grow in skill and confidence as the season progressed. I witnessed the positive attitude we carried throughout the season, supporting and encouraging one another regardless of the outcome of the game. We may not have fit your image of what a team should look like. But when I consider my teammates I see what a team can and should look like, what in fact society should look like: where each individual is valued for who they are and the contribution they bring, whatever it may be. We sought to practice inclusion, and while we are not the perfect model of it, I think we set a pretty good example.

I loved being on the field again after all these years. I love the thrill of the game, especially now that my intense competitiveness has softened. I love the opportunity to connect with my son in a new way. I love playing alongside old and new friends. I love the adrenaline and endorphins that flood my brain during and after each game, boosting my energy and my mental health. I love feeling my body strengthen and my stamina increase. I also love the lessons that soccer, or any team sport, can teach. A soccer game is about the team as a group. Each individual has value and matters, but no single individual makes or breaks the team. We must learn to work together, to know our roles and to interact in a way that increases our effectiveness. We learn to support one another at all times, whether scoring or conceding goals, whether our passing game is going well or going to shit, and whether we are winning or losing. We win by standing together. We win by demonstrating the value of community. We win by choosing to be visible and proud.

Having successfully completed the summer season, our team decided to continue playing in the fall season. I’m excited to build on the foundation we have laid. I am also looking forward to playing games when it is less than 95 degrees out! I am proud of myself and I am proud of this team. We are the Fierce Pride.