Relishing the Moment
I give my daughter a bad time about being too rough on the basketball court, but in reality I love her feistiness. Last week when I asked if she wanted to come to open gym with me, she looked up from her book and yawned. She was snuggled into bed, our dog sassy draped across her.
“Not tonight mom.”
“Alright.” I said.
I grabbed my high-tops and was opening the door when I heard, “Hey mom, wait!”
My assistant coach and her daughter came to open gym as well, and while my assistant and I lowered the hoops and chatted, the girls shot around. Then by two’s, seniors who would no longer be playing for our high school, arrived to play. I was glad to see them, glad that something about the game and the friendships that they’ve built bring them back to this court even though they are finished with their high school careers.
Once enough players arrived, we played full-court basketball and little miss “I want to read my book” was flying up and down the court, hustling for loose balls and crashing the boards. I couldn’t help but smile. It was heaven for me. Twenty years ago, when I nearly lost my life in a car accident, I never would have dreamed I would be in this place. Playing basketball with my daughter. Whatever her future in the game matters not, it’s this moment we share together.
What are some of the moments in your life that make life worth living?
Balancing Chaos
Last night I received the first round of edits from my editor in LA. My book BACK ON THE COURT, is to be published this fall by Tigress Pubishing and the process is underway. Am I scared? Hell yes! Excited and scared. This book writing thing has been a long process, with life mixed in. But isn’t that what life is all about? Figuring out how to blend it all. How to sit down and read 250 pages of edit work when you’ve got in-laws in town, a birthday to prepare for, tax information to search for (had to file for and extension this year), a team fundraiser to organize, kids baseball & softball games to attend and well, basically just…a life to live.
Variety is the Spice of Life
I love basketball and feel very fortunate that I was able to get my college education paid for playing the game, but because I love it doesn’t mean it’s all I do. Too often I talk to young athletes (or their parents) that have decided that they are going to focus on one sport. “For what?” is my first thought. To go pro? .03 percent of high school basketball players make it to the professional level. To get a scholarship to college? Less than 1 percent of kids receive scholarships to play basketball in college. Often the money spent trying to improve a child’s skills in hopes that the child will earn a scholarship, could pay for college itself. And often the result is a child that has injuries from repeated use and no longer loves the game. Being a part of a team is a lot of fun, most of the time, but even when it’s not, a young athlete is staying out of trouble and learning lessons that will help them throughout their lifetime.
Why not play several sports? I expect my kids (the ones I’m raising), and I suggest to the kids that I coach, to play different sports. And why not play instruments, draw, design and create, on top of studying, because as a coach I’ve seen the burn out. A 3rd grader goes full-time select soccer and is done with soccer by middle school. A Senior in high school is recruited to play Division 1 basketball but doesn’t except the scholarship because she’s tired of playing. These are just a couple of many stories I have heard over the years.
I’m 44 years old and I play basketball 2-3 times a week because I love […]
Is it worth it?
Have I told you that I’m a basketball coach? I’ve spent twenty years coaching. Ten years as an assistant with high school and middle school kids, and as many years with recreational teams. This however, was my first year as a Head Coach at the high school level, and let me tell you, it was a challenge.
I felt as if I had been dropped into a war zone. There was little time to prepare especially with my big learning curve on the paperwork side of things (In the past my role as an assistant had been to concentrate on the kids). I worked at a harried pace, searching for missing uniforms, organizing equipment and getting the word out about tryouts. After flyers and speeches and meetings and e-mails…I had 15 girls tryout. I was crushed. How could a school of 1000+, half of which are female, have so few girls that wanted to be a part of their school’s basketball program?
My assistant and I focused on the positive. We had enough for a team. Barely. We worked the girls hard mentally and physically, knowing that if they put the effort in, they would see results. If not on the scoreboard, in their heart and soul.
We started with a couple of big wins, but then came loss after loss. We still pushed. Sometimes they pushed back. Did they question our intentions? Why should they trust us? Would we give up on them? A few players gave up on us and we wondered if we would keep enough girls to have a squad? But we did, and the girls that […]
Meet Sonya
Meet Sonya
Sonya Elliott’s memoir, Back on the Court: A Young Woman’s Triumphant Return to Life, Love & Basketball, is her story of finding hope in the wake of tragedy after she and her fiancé were hit by a train. She blogs about writing, basketball, and life and is currently working on a Young Adult Novel and a Non-Fiction Coaching book. Stories of her career as a fashion model are woven through her memoir, as both the Soloflex and Easy Spirit Shoes commercials were filmed during that time period, and this unique and intriguing business continues to be a part of her life.
Sonya played basketball at Eastern Washington University and was a starter for the Big Sky Champion team that went to the 1987 NCAA tournament. She coached for almost 25 years and was voted Seattle Times Coach of the Year, Seattle Officials Women’s Basketball Association Coach of the Year, and twice voted Metro League Coach of the Year. She loves the game of basketball and is thankful, not only for her husband and kids but for her ability to continue to get back on the court.
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PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Staying Vertical
Today is one of those days that I could crawl straight back into bed. This is not normal for me.
My bed is back upstairs so I have managed not to make the dive onto that firm mattress after sending the kids off to school, although I almost allowed myself to sneak onto the sofa but refrained knowing my long “To Do” list would sit unchanged.
Why am I so tired? Is it because of the rainy glum day? because of the tetanus shot that I got yesterday? Or maybe the stress from worrying about the tetanus shot because after the last one, ten years ago, I ended up in ER when my arm swelled to twice its size? Or am I just tired and need a break?
I don’t know, but what I do know is that I didn’t allow myself to go horizontal. I used my basketball training, that part of […]
PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: A New Season
First of all congrats to Patti Bunting on winning a free PLB t-shirt from last weeks drawing!
I can’t believe the season is changing. I’m ready for it. I love fall. Not because the kids go back to school (though when they were young and oh-so-time-consuming, that was a bonus), but because of the fresh cool air, the amber leaves, the sound of a football game on the TV, the calm I feel…the anticipation of basketball season.
What are some things that you love about fall? Remember to take time to appreciate them.
Monday’s Pen to Paper: Whatever It Takes
I’m working on two books right now. It took me ten years to write my first one, so I’m not certain this is a good idea. Still, I find that it is helpful at times to have two completely different stories in the works. When I reach a road block on one book – I’m tired or not sure where to move with the story – I switch books and there is new energy.
Maybe you don’t have to write a second book, maybe just change your environment or do something different. Go for a walk, paint, sing, skydive, something that inspires.
Quite often the best thing to do is to knuckle down and write, but if that’s not working, do whatever it takes to keep your pen hitting the paper…
Writing Prompt: I am inspired by…
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