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Yeah, I was one of those kids. You know the kind. The one
Who??™s always chosen last for team events.
When I started the new school in
Campbell,
Missouri,
I didn??™t know anyone and felt like an outsider. My daddy had
just passed away. We moved to Missouri because my mom??™s
only sister lived there, and Mom wanted to be near her.
Things were tough. I was going through many changes in my
life and it was hard for me to make new friends at first. I
really don??™t know why. Maybe I was in mourning.
Things were much different at the new school. I really
wasn??™t that bright, I??™m sorry to say, just an average
student. I really wanted to be, but I wasn??™t. So not only
did I believe I as short on brain power, I was just a poor,
shy girl that no one ever noticed. At least that's how I
saw it.
Music and P.E. were my favorite subjects. I loved to sing
and looked forward to music class. I didn??™t so much like to
do the exercises in P.E., but I enjoyed playing War Ball.
Some people used to call it "Dodge Ball".
The coach always chose two team leaders and they would
alternate choosing players until everyone had been picked. I
was usually one of the last, but it really didn??™t bother me
too much.
We played the game on the basketball court. Each team was
given the same number of balls and we would throw the balls
at each other until there was no one left on a team. If you
were hit by a ball then you were out of the game. But if you
caught the ball, then the person that threw it was out.
Neither team was allowed to cross the line that separated
the teams. The team with a player left standing was the
winner.
When I first started playing, I was a little shy and wasn??™t
very good at it. I would usually be one of the first ones
out of the game, but one day it happened. I started catching
the balls instead of just dodging them. I started going up
to the line and throwing the ball instead of throwing from
the back. I started getting people out. Before I knew it I
was the last one standing and our team won the game.
The next time we had P.E. I wasn??™t the last person to be
picked. I was one of the first ones chosen.
I overcame something that day. I learned that I could be
just as good a player as anyone else. I had lacked
confidence. Now, looking back, I realize that life is like
that. Yes, bad things can happen, but life goes on.
Sometimes we miss out on the good things because we are
afraid to make new friends, try something different or think
we aren??™t good enough.
What we get out of life is up to us. The U.S. Army once had
a commercial on television that said, ???Be All That You Can
Be.??? That saying is so true. We can be anything we want to
be if we want it bad enough.
(c) 2003 by Mary Ann Featherston
Maryann63701 @ msn.com
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Blessings to you today
Bob Johnston |
