I feel like I’ve been writing about baseball/softball quite a bit lately, but I had some flashbacks yesterday that are worth reflecting on. At least I think so.
My daughter has been playing softball this spring and seems to be enjoying it. She’s been mainly playing what I call the “rover” position (she calls it “short center”), but near the end of her last game she started warming up as a pitcher. I didn’t know this was something she was interested in and she got her first start yesterday. All in all, I think she did pretty well. The flashbacks for me started during one particular inning when she had some control problems, meaning, she was walking a few batters and had a hard time getting the ball over the plate.
I played baseball as a child all the way through high school (and, as I think I mentioned, one unmemorable year in college) and my main position was also pitcher. One of my big issues/problems was also control. I always felt like I had to throw it as hard as I could and didn’t pay nearly enough attention to actually thinking about getting the ball over the plate. So when Caroline walked two or three batters in a row, I kept thinking about a young Chris Coon and all the frustrations I had. I felt like I was letting the team down. It seems so easy, right? Coaches would say, “Nice and easy, just get it over the plate” or “Let the fielders help you,” meaning, you don’t have to try to strike everyone out. But actually getting the dumb ball over the plate was never that easy for me.
I know nothing about softball pitching so I wasn’t much help, not that Caroline was really looking for help. I could tell her to take deep breaths, relax, etc., but that’s about the extent of it. She, however, takes things in stride much better than I do, at least on the surface.
If a parent is honest and open about struggling as a child/youth, I think that’s one of the best things we can offer our kids. If they want to listen!