Things that make you go....Hmmmm.....

It has been a while since I've blogged about Daria and soccer. Not that she has stopped playing....just that things have settled down some. Things are starting to pick up again. Which is okay....but in the last couple of days there has been a lot of things to think about. Soccer shouldn't be this difficult for parents when she is only 10!!

This last month has been Spring Academy for her. I suppose it is like a soccer camp....but it really is just a preview for Classic tryouts. She has also been finishing up a Spring outdoor PDP session. As always she continues to amaze me and does an amazing job. She seems to be improving all the time...and that is a good thing!!

My biggest wish in the world of soccer has been that the selection of teams would be fair and based on the girls' playing abilities. The more I listen in and learn about it, though, I am finding that it is a very political thing....and it all starts back when the girls start playing soccer!! It is just ridiculously crazy. I try very hard not to let myself get carried away with the frustration of it all. It is so easy to get wrapped up in it all. Ultimately, I just want Daria to play with a good team, and for a good coach who we can work with and be respected for our point of view regarding church.

In this last outdoor session, Daria's team recruited a trio of girls from a Newberg team to play with them. Their coach came along too. These girls were excellent....and I knew of the coach from college. He played soccer for George Fox when I was a student. And through other George Fox/soccer connections, I have heard very good things about this coach.

The last couple of games, this coach has said very flattering things about Daria and her playing. Of course, being her mother, I think she is a fabulous player. She continues to amaze me with her abilities. Even so, I still soak up the things that people tell her directly....as well as the things that I overhear. There's just something about seeing and hearing that your children do well. Then on Friday night, at the End of Season party, this coach approached Tim and I about Daria coming to play on his team.

He said all the right things.

This coach believes that Daria should play on an A team. He was surprised that the A team coach in our town hadn't picked her up yet.....that she should be playing on their team. And not just playing.....but starting. He also said that he has a winning club. His team has gone to the medal rounds in every thing they have entered. He says that with a player like Daria....they could go all the way. Whose to know if he's right. A mom wants to believe all that....but who knows if he is just laying it on thick. He also said the he already knows what he would work on with Daria to make her from a good player....to a great player. Now that one I will agree with....the things that he talked about are things I see his daughter do. She is one classy player.

This presents a lot of things for Tim and I to think over...and a decision needs to be made by Friday. He presented a lot of other thoughts....like taking control of Daria's soccer future instead of letting the A team decide it for her. He said he really had picked up on the political factor between the two teams when they played a couple of weeks ago. We also talked with him about our stand on Sunday games during the church hour. He was very understanding of that. We have been very worried about that...especially after this current coach gave us so much grief for missing a game because of church.

So....all that to say....that I'm proud of my girlie. It is exciting to me that she is being noticed and asked for. Yet so much to think about and making sure we make the right decision for her...and our family. I laid awake way too long the other night thinking about it. The relative known vs. the relative unknown.

Hmmmm.....