Sonya Elliott – Page 42 – Back on the Court

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 […]