Do the fat wooly bears really have a chance?

In the Spring it's the spotted salamanders who are trying to cross the road.  They wait for dark.  They wait for rain.  Then they go forth- risking death to make it to their vernal nesting pools.  Some make it, some don't.  But they all still try.

In the fall the big fat furry wooly bears cross the road.  They wait for sun.  They wait for warmth and then they go for it.  I'm not sure what they're trying to cross the road for but some make it, and some don't.  But they still try.

We are, as of late, a family of BIG losers.  It's hard to watch.  The boys' soccer team (of which I'm embarrassed to say I coach) has failed to win A GAME this season.  There have been many games because of all the jamborees: 3 games per jamboree x 3 jamborees + two regular season games= LOTS OF LOSING.

Claire's field hockey team (of which I'm excited to say she made) has had 6 games.  SIX chances to win.  But NOOO!  And I'm starting to play for a brand new women's hockey league in the area.  There are four teams in the league- we've played four games and have lost them all.  And I'm not talking tiny losses (close games).  We have ALL lost BIG TIME.  Like, BIG TIME.  Blowouts- 4-0, 5-0, sometimes more.  We are a family of losers.  I keep telling the kids, "We're making progress,"  "You're getting better,"  "You're gonna win one of these days,"  but FUCK THAT!  I want them to WIN now.  I want them to have won yesterday.  And the day before.  I want them (and me too) to rejoice in the feeling of WINNING.  The feeling, specifically in sports, that is, "I AM BETTER THAN YOU RIGHT NOW!" 

This sucks.

It really sucks.

Because they're starting to get used to LOSING.  They're starting to accept LOSING!

So I googled (well, actually Binged) "benefits of losing" and the pages and pages of "Benefits of weight loss" popped up.  Okay, that didn't work.  So, I added "benefits of losing in sports" and the only sites that popped up were "benefits of sports" sites.  Okay, Okay, I thought, "benefits of losing the game".  NO RESULTS FOUND!  Seriously.  You try it.  So, under those words was a related search section so I clicked on "We are losing the game" and a series of heavy metal music videos popped up.  This isn't where I wanted to go.  I wanted there to be a list of POSITIVES TO LOSING somewhere out there and what I discovered is that THERE IS NO FUCKING POSITIVE TO LOSING!  It just plain sucks.  So, I typed in "positives to losing in athletics" and I came across an article about a losing softball team that talks about how they take away the positives from losing but it doesn't really highlight the positives (because there fucking aren't any).  The article does end with a quote from the sage athletic director: "They'll take these lessons on into life...this isn't the only adversity they're going to face in their lifetime.  This will teach them how to handle it in most ways students don't get the opportunities to learn."  In other words- YOU'RE LEARNING HOW TO BE LOSERS.  AREN'T YOU LUCKY???  BE GLAD YOU FUCKING LOSERS.

I'm sorry I'm swearing so much.  I'm just mad.  I'm mad at all this losing.

We just watched Little Miss Sunshine on Saturday night.   If you haven't seen this movie you have to see it RIGHT NOW.  I'm not kidding.  It's one of my favorites.  The dad in the film is trying to get a book deal on his 9 steps to happiness theory.  His main philosophy is that there are winners in this world and there are losers.  I'm pretty sure by the end of the movie his outlook on life (and happiness) changes but it's a good question.  Are we destined for winning or losing?  And is this destiny handed down from generation to generation?  Are you born a winner?  A loser?   Do my children have a chance at WINNING??

I went to an amazing school to play field hockey.  I'm sure I've talked about it here before.  So, I won't go into details. We made it to the Final Four three out of my four years.  We made it to the final game two of those times.  Did I ever win a national championship?  NO.  Is this something I still think about?  Yes.  We did not win.  We got close.  We showed up.  But I didn't ever have a chance to have that feeling.  AM I PASSING THIS GENETIC LOSING TRAIT TO MY KIDS?  Holy shit, I hope not.  Please let this not be the case.

It's not about winning and losing- it's about playing the game.  Right?  Everyone says this.  They're playing the game.  They're risking the chance of losing in order TO MAYBE POSSIBLY WIN!  My fat wooly bears really do have chance!!  Someone has to win.  Why can't it be one of mine???

ON THE TOPIC

“They’ll take these lessons on to life,” Oberhelman said. “This isn’t the only adversity they’re going to face in their lifetime. They’re going to face a lot of downtime in their careers and in their personal lives. This will teach them how to handle it in ways most students don’t get the opportunity to learn.” - See more at: http://mustangnews.net/young-softball-team-takes-positives-from-losing-record/#sthash.TP9bLmDF.dpuf

“They’ll take these lessons on to life,” Oberhelman said. “This isn’t the only adversity they’re going to face in their lifetime. They’re going to face a lot of downtime in their careers and in their personal lives. This will teach them how to handle it in ways most students don’t get the opportunity to learn.”
- See more at: http://mustangnews.net/young-softball-team-takes-positives-from-losing-record/#sthash.TP9bLmDF.dpuf