Day Dream Believer

The field was sopping wet and mud was getting tossed all over the shorts, socks and faces of the kids. Occasionally a soccer ball was kicked towards the goal, yet most of the time, the coach would yell, “Kick it this way!” as the ball headed out of bounce for the 20th time. I watched the coach gently turn several kids around to get them going down the field in the right direction. All in a days work when coaching a group of five year olds.

My five year old son, Lincoln, started playing soccer this year and we are surprised to see a side of him that we’d not seen before. He’s much more confident and aggressive than we expected running right into the mix after the ball.

 
Lincoln spending the afternoon at a muddy soccer practice

Yet as the coach separated the kids into two teams for a scrimmage, Lincoln couldn’t keep from his hands off a large pole in a pool of mud. He’d quietly drift behind the goal till he reached the spot.  Maybe it was the pole. Maybe the mud. Either way, it was more interesting than soccer so he continued going back to it even after the coach called him back to the field several times.

Kim and I smiled at each other as we watched this struggle between player and coach from the sidelines. I supposed one of us could have gone down on the field and taken care of the issue, but we didn’t. It was a good learning experience for Lincoln in taking direction from an adult other than his parents.

As I watched Lincoln wander off I couldn’t help but think he’s a curious kid and with a short attention span. I can relate to that well as I get bored very easily and will find alternate activities to keep busy.

If Lincoln does have a little day dreamer in him, he can blame his parents.