What do mom and dad really know anyway?
- Bryan Schaaf
- August 4, 2018
- 1990
By the time this goes to print, I’ll officially be more than a week into my 12th season as the girls soccer coach at Northwestern High School.
When I started this in the spring of 2007, it was meant to be a bucket list item checked. Do it for a few years, find out if I had any ability at it and hand it off to another willing individual. Easy as that, done and dusted.
But more than a decade on, I’m continually asking myself the question: How will I ever leave?
Back in my days as a sports writer, I had the opportunity to interact with a lot of high school coaches. And, boy, let me tell you, some of the stories I’d hear regarding entitled teenagers and overzealous parents were enough to make you question the plight of humanity.
Sports writers hear this stuff all the time, and often it’s enough to make you question why anybody would stick their neck out for such a thankless task.
But here’s the thing. It’s not thankless at all. In fact my years spent working with young kids in a place I’ve never called home has truly been one of the most gratifying experiences of my existence.
Today as I write this, I have former athletes who’ve ventured to the far reaches of the planet doing military and nonprofit work. I have others who are moving cross-country to start new careers. Others have settled locally and are having children. Shoot, some have already had children who are now plugged back into our youth soccer program.
There aren’t words to describe the gratification that comes with seeing this.
Much like raising your own children, there are always going to bumps and bruises and trials and tribulations along the way. And in the process you take a deep breath, make the decision you feel is best and hope you’ve not messed them up along the way.
The problem is — also like raising your own kids — you don’t really know how well you’ve done until they’re off creating their own lives as adults.
Today, when I look around at the hundreds of young people I’ve had the opportunity to work with over the years, I’m really proud of what they’ve become. High school is an incredibly difficult, formative time in the lives of people. Most of us probably look back at who we were during those years and cringe a bit.
I know I do based on hair style alone.
As coaches, teachers and anyone else blessed to interact with kids this age, we are placed in a unique position to influence them in ways their parents may struggle. Ask most teenagers — what do mom and dad know anyway?
This Friday night marks our annual preseason alumni game, which is an opportunity for our former athletes to come back, put on the shin guards and boots, and relive the ghost for one night a year.
From a personal standpoint, the fact they just come out to experience the event means the world. For me it’s evidence I’ve not ruined them or their love for a game I hold so near and dear.
More so than any successes we may experience on the field, that’s the most gratifying part for me.