Sooooooo, tired. We just completed our first week of volleyball practice. For me, that means about 6 hours/day of mostly standing/walking, you know…coaching. I was told last year by our trainer that it is actually far worse for the coaches in regards to foot, knee, and back wear and tear than a player. Their dynamic movements does make their muscles more sore but the standing and minimal movements as a coach puts a ton of pressure on the lower back, knees and feet. I will not, cannot and shall not dispute that. Add in a 10 hour jaunt to Kennywood Amusement Park yesterday and I could actually weep at the thought of having to do anything on my feet tonight. I’m a little grumpy but ok. I’m not even really excited to make dinner or play with the kids this evening.
Joe (my oldest), in the aftermath of a huge day at Kennywood, is having a rough day. His nose is stuffed, his throat is sore and he just doesn’t feel right. He’s doing his best to just get by but it’s really hard. A few weeks ago we were at the pool when Trey was not feeling well. He had been to the hospital to get his weekly meds, got an antibiotic for an apparent ear infection, and despite saying he wanted to go to the pool just couldn’t handle it. He flipped out. His sickness and exhaustion got the better of him. Joe is a lot older and more mature and is doing his best to get by…at best.
Now, let’s go backwards two days. As mentioned last Friday, Wednesday would be cut day. We did have to cut 3 girls. I told them all face to face if they made it, what I expect for and from them moving forward, and how much they can expect to play given their skill set. Two girls upon hearing that I just didn’t think that they would play much chose to quit. I respect them for that. One girl who was cut took it really really hard. Todd, my assistant coach, felt horrible for her (he’s still not real good at this part of coaching). He then asked how this girl didn’t or couldn’t realize that she was not gifted at volleyball. I replied, “It isn’t about knowing, it’s about fearing that you’re not. Most teenage girls (and people in general) have a thousand fears about others perception of them. When one of them gets confirmed (getting cut in this case) you wonder, “so are all of those fears true?’.” Thus, you/she is crushed.
Physically, being hurt or sore in one part of our body impacts our desire or ability to do things. If we are sick, we don’t/can’t do what we can when we are healthy. But, what about emotional pain? With emotional pain, very often this goes overlooked. It IS sneaky. We don’t give it the attention it deserves. We don’t surround ourselves with enough love, comfort, and care that our emotions need. We ignore it, hope it goes away, or sadly, numb it up.
Physical pain, sickness, and emotional pain all hamper most aspects of our life. Sadly, only the first two get the attention they really need. I hope you take some time and go through some of my older posts (through my blog using either the “search” button or “topics” drop down) and take a look at things that can help you sort through some of the emotional pain in your life.
Now I’m going to take an ice bath, not catch Joe’s cold, and get some comfort attached to my guilt associated with not being excited about playing with the kids. Lastly, if you think I’m about to take an ice bath you have more than another thing coming.