Monday’s Pen to Paper: Make It Happen
I got a slow start to NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), but last night I made myself get going, I sat down at my computer and wrote…and boy did it feel good.
Even if you don’t feel like it, you don’t think you have the time to do the things that you love to do, do them anyway, and feel joy seep into your heart.
WRITING PROMPT: Write about something that you love to do.
PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Protect Our Kids…because the title of this blog could have easily been… “Another High School Football Player Seriously Injured.”
I saw the hit coming. I was at the top of the stadium watching my son’s high school football game and my stomach clenched as he ran a slant across the middle of the field while a freight train was headed in his direction. The F’word formed on my lips before the hit even happened, before my son leaped up to catch the pass, open and defenseless, to the oncoming hit. A hard tackle would have been bad, but I watched as a kid rammed his helmet into my son’s head and then pushed him to the ground. My son’s arms went slack and his body limp as he fell. The proud defender looked down upon him. I wanted to vomit.
I had just been telling another mom that I hated having to play these final games, when our high school had been eliminated from the playoffs. How I had wanted to be done with football this year. I was looking forward to basketball season and an opportunity for my son to grow and get stronger, make it safer for him to be playing football when the next season came around. He had even scheduled to meet with a trainer to better prepare himself for his junior year. But strength wouldn’t have helped him this night, strength wouldn’t have stopped that targeted hit. The bottom line is, changes need to take place in how the game of football is played, especially at the high school level.
My son has been throwing a football since he was three years old. Every time we go on a family walk, a football is in tow. Football is a part of family life at the Elliott house. I didn’t grow up around the game myself, […]
Monday’s Pen to Paper: What the heck is NaNoWriMo?
I’ve had friends in the past who have written first drafts of their novels by being a part of NaNoWriMo. I never quite understood what it was and have shied away from doing it, but this November I decided that if it can help me get my first draft finished sooner, why not give it a try.
National Novel Writing Month is put on by a non-profit organization to encourage writing. For the month of November, thousands of people write like crazy, working to finish their novels. The NaNoWriMo website helps writers to track their word-counts toward a goal of at least 50,000 words.
I’m excited to be on board this year, even if I’m a little behind with my word count (It’s day 2 and I’m still at zero). But not for long, from now on, it’s one day at a time until I’ve got a finished novel!
If you need a boost to get your writing going, it’s not too late! Join me for the ride. Go to NaNoWriMo, sign up and get writing!
WRITING PROMPT#1: Start your novel.
WRITING PROMPT#2: Carla stood up and threw her pen across the room…
PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Patience
I played basketball with a group of high school girls at open gym this week. A great workout for me, and whether they liked it or not (between my huffing and puffing) the girls got some coaching. Not super serious coaching, more encouragement and reminders, but I just couldn’t help myself. Once a coach always a coach.
“Nice look.” “Sweet Pass.” “Stay between your man and the basket.”
I’d set a screen away and make them think about movement away from the ball. Remind them, and myself, to stay low, jump to the ball, block out. As much as I don’t like getting old and being a little out of shape, not being able to do what I wanted to do, exactly when I wanted to do it, emphasized for me how important patience is, as a player and as a coach, because it’s not always easy to do things right.
There is a lot to learn on the basketball court. You have to move the ball up the court by dribbling and passing and run different offenses and defenses. It takes tons of practice to get it right on a regular basis and even with practice, with the repetition and reminders of how the game is played, mistakes happen.
So if you are frustrated with your play on the basketball court (or with your writing, or your production at work, or your ability to stay in a yoga pose, or anything in life) remind yourself to be patient. If you are a coach and you’re not happy with how your team is doing, assess the weak points of the team and make sure your drills work to strengthen those weakness, but understand that it will take time and remind yourself that your players […]
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: Fuel Your Passion
If you love to play basketball it makes it easier to work at practice everyday. Having passion for your sport or activity makes working hard easier, but it doesn’t mean that it will always be easy. Practice is practice, and it’s not always fun.
If you’re finding it hard to get out of bed and get to work on the court, take a moment to listen to your body and mind. Sometimes it’s a matter of pushing yourself a bit more but there are times when you need a break.
Is your body hurting, not sore, but hurting? Take a short break to heal.
Do you feel burnt out? Have you lost your passion? Your love of the game can get covered up by expectations and stress. Will I make Varsity? Will I start? Will I be good enough to play in […]
Monday’s Pen to Paper: Distraction and the Social Media Madness
Our lives are filled with distraction. Now it comes at us 24/7 by way of social media. Look around you. How often do you see people staring at their phones as they walk, drive or even while they’re in conversation? Are they fully engaged in life or are they disconnected and living through the lives of others via social media? Don’t get me wrong, I’m on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Linked In and I enjoy catching up and seeing what my friends are doing. And I post for work and to update my friends and family. But when I’m looking at social media, more often than not, I get annoyed because I know there is no way I can keep up with all the data coming in, all the pictures, the videos, and the updates, yet at times, I waste my time […]
PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Comebacks and Life
It sucks being hurt. It’s been a while since I’ve had an injury that kept me off the court for more than a month, one that I can’t tape up and fight through, but this last month has been different. I pulled the muscles of my rotator cuff, and I have been nursing a sprained wrist, so I can’t play basketball and I hate it. I really shouldn’t complain because my daughter is rehabbing a torn lateral meniscus in her knee and she is a college athlete who was looking forward to her sophomore season, I am just an old mom who likes to play the game. Still for both of us, it has been difficult to be injured.
I have recovered from worse injuries in my life. A shattered right arm which included a torn rotator cuff for one […]
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