Sonya Elliott – Page 47 – Back on the Court

Monday’s Pen to Paper: A Cool Breeze And A Good Night Of Z’s Equals Happiness

I’ve been melting lately. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a nice sunny day but when the temperature creeps up past 90 degrees in Seattle it’s just too hot for me. It’s not that bad if I can escape to the water, but that’s not alway the case, I’m often at home where our house becomes an oven.

A good friend of mine loves this type of heat. In it she’s vibrant and alive, while I, on the other hand, feel cooked and tired and grumpy. I have been fighting this tired feeling over the past few days, pushing myself to enjoy the heat some as well as get work done. But honestly, it hasn’t been easy. Then last night a cool breeze came in.

I opened every window and door in the house, I stepped outside to feel the freshness whirl around me and to hear rustling in the trees. I breathed in the crisp air. I even hoped for rain. The rain didn’t, come but a smile did. And so did a great nights sleep which made me ready for a new day, no matter the temperature.

WRITING PROMPT #1: What makes you happy?

WRITING PROMPT #2: Eleanor wished her air conditioning hadn’t died…

PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Free Fun

My mom was in town for three days. It was a chance for us girls (me, my mom and my daughter) to celebrate a belated Birthday/Mother’s day present for my mom, our Oma. I had planned to get tickets for a concert downtown and perhaps go to the theatre as well, but I didn’t find music, or an act, at the usual venues that I thought my mom would truly enjoy.

However, I did find a free concert at a local coffee shop in our neighborhood (C & P Coffee House), and on an Instagram post my daughter found Dancing Until Dusk, which involved free swing dance lessons and live music at Westlake Park. So we went for it. During my mom’s visit we also took pleasure in beach combing at low tide on Alki, spent an afternoon making jewelry, and an evening taking in the view of Seattle while enjoying fish tacos at Marination.

And we did it all on near to nothing.

I wasn’t trying to be stingy, in fact I was ready to spend money, it was a celebration, but as I know (and it doesn’t hurt to get reminded from time to time), you don’t need to spend a lot of money to have fun. It’s how you spend your time that is important. And let me tell you, we spent our time wisely, and had a blast.

Spend time doing things that you love with the people who you love…

PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Find Your Groove.

Sonya Elliott – AAU Basketball 1983

Some people have a natural shot. I’m not one of those people, but with time on the court, hard work and heart, I became a good shooter. There are better shooters for sure, but I have always been good enough to help my team and that is all that matters to me.

Learning to shoot can be a challenge. I know it has been tough for my kids because they get conflicting advise. Mom (former college basketball player and a basketball coach for 25 years) tells them one thing and Dad (former college athlete) tells them another. My daughter never wanted to do extra shooting around my husband and I, because our opinions differed. In the end it didn’t matter who was giving the correct coaching techniques for shooting (though I believe it was me), what mattered was the effect upon my daughter. The conflict caused her to stop doing extra shooting through much of high school. It was difficult for her to take on, and execute, two different opinions so instead she focused on other parts of her game. She is a well-rounded player that rebounds, passes and plays tenacious defense with the best of them, and she can score (she has a nice shot), but it hasn’t been until this summer that she has wanted to find her own space, and shoot again.

Having parents and coaches on the same page is so important. It is not always easy to find middle ground with two coaching parents, for a parent to support a coach with a different style, or for an assistant coach to follow a head coaches techniques and philosophy, however it is better for a player to have less conflict, to […]

Monday’s Pen to Paper: What Are You Resisting?

Today I wrote with my friend Jenny and my daughter (our usual Thursday writing day was full this week). We warmed up our pens and our minds with the writing prompt, What am I resisting? What a great question. A question that is important to address. And the thing about answering this question, is that if you allow yourself the opportunity to open up, (even if it’s just to yourself, maybe on a piece of paper that you tear up and throw away when you’re done), if you probe the truths within your heart and soul, you will find that you know the answers. Not only to what you’re resisting, but why, and often even how best to find your way through the resistance and on to living your life to it’s fullest.