Hi Everyone!
As this is the season during which having a big heart is encouraged, I thought I would share with you an email that my sister-in-law sent me about her son, Andrew. Andrew is an adorable second-grade boy who happens to be extremely small for his age.
I am not sure how it came about, but Andrew decided he wanted to play basketball this season.
I did some investigating, and it turns out our town’s team is quite competitive and has both second and third graders, many of whom have been playing for many years. It seemed that this was not for Andrew. We didn’t want him to feel out of his league….
Alex (Amy’s husband) and I explained all of this to Andrew. We told him that the coach had said that he could go and participate in all the practices, but probably would not get much playing time in games. However, Andrew persisted that he wanted to play on this team. Even after we told him he would be the smallest with the least basketball experience, he persisted. He asked us how he would get better for next year if he didn’t do it this year. SO – Andrew went to the first practice today. They did running and calisthenics for the first part of practice. I thought Andrew (and many of the other boys) were going to pass out – but Andrew kept on going. Then they did some basketball drills and Andrew kept going – figuring out how to dribble a ball while sitting down (yes, this was one drill). Then they practiced passing and shooting – Andrew kept going.
At each water break I would ask him if he was OK, and he kept saying yes, yes… At the end of the practice I asked if he wanted to join the team and he did not waiver. I am so proud of him and inspired by him. I am not sure I would have had the courage to get out there if my parents told me all the things we told Andrew. Then, once he got out there, he worked so hard to keep up – which he pretty much did – and this, too, was courageous!
So this holiday season, here’s to little people with big hearts.
Cheers!
Heather
heather@kiddybites.com