A hungry dog runs faster
For the past month I have been feeling something I’ve not experienced for a quite a while. It’s been a long year with little to look forward to, but with the vaccine rollout underway, I have allowed myself to think about things I might actually get to do in a few months. Spend time with family and friends. Go back to work in the office. Attend an outdoor musical performance. Maybe within a year I won’t be apprehensive about eating at a favorite restaurant or going to the movie theater.
The things I used to take for granted will feel like a celebration
But I know if I pack my calendar full, they won’t be as special. Even fun can begin to feel like another item on my to-do list.
There won’t be time for that feeling I have right now. That feeling called anticipation.
Anticipation is part of the total experience
My dad often told me not to eat too much before a game because a hungry dog runs faster. I took it literally at the time, but the advice is about more than overeating.
For the first ever girls’ basketball season in our high school, we had six games. Six. The next year we had 12 games, and then schedules expanded to include non-conference games and tournaments. My senior year we played in 20 games. I didn’t play other sports, so I had games on 20 out of 365 days. And I looked forward to every single one of them.
But when the season ended, it felt good to come home from school and not have practice. My schedule shifted and I did other things. And a couple months later I’d be out on the driveway shooting baskets. Over the summer I’d practice my ball-handling skills and run sprints. I knew I couldn’t wait until the season started to pick up a ball again. But I didn’t want to wait.
By mid-summer, I’d start my countdown. Four months till the season starts…six weeks till the season starts...four days till the season starts! When the first day of practice came, I couldn’t wait to join my teammates on the court.
During the summer I missed playing in the gym. I missed practicing after school with my teammates. I missed the feeling of satisfaction after a hard practice. Mostly I missed the excitement of game day.
I have heard of many young athletes who quit because playing the game they loved became a job. Year-round practices and games leave no downtime to rest. No downtime for anticipation to build for the next season. No time to look forward to the next game, because after playing soccer today, there’s baseball tomorrow.
New schedules, new ballgame?
It will be interesting to see what happens when we can return to old routines. Just as we had to adjust to a new way of living a year ago, we will have to adjust again to our new “old” schedules.
I will have to trade the leisurely start to my morning that includes extra writing time and a walk for a 45-minute commute in the car. I am thinking about how I can keep some of the good things I’ve gained during covid in my new routine. I will make careful choices about how I spend my 78 hours of “free time” each week.
Maybe some kids and parents are thinking along the same lines when it comes to extra-curricular activities. Will they immediately go back to a full schedule or will they allow some breathing room for their family?
Will parents think more carefully about how they commit their children’s free time?
With the cancelled or scaled back seasons many youth athletes have experienced over the past year, some kids may have come to the realization that they don’t really want to play every sport they used to. Maybe they’ve found a new hobby or interest during covid they would rather spend time on.
But I bet those who have missed playing will return to their sport with a new appreciation and renewed enthusiasm.
Like the old Heinz Ketchup commercials told us, good things are worth the wait.
Watch: “Anticipation” Heinz Ketchup Commercials
Related Posts