“They Kept Coming Back”

Yesterday was dance competition day.
Our girls have been Highland Dancing for a few years now and are really enjoying it, but yesterday something happened that they had never experienced before. The music for the first dance was new, different and a lot of the dancers struggled.

After the debacle that was the “Trophy Fling,” those young dancers got back on that stage and did it again, this time as part of the competition.
Sometimes the biggest victories are the small victories of the mind. They kept coming back to that stage and dancing their dance.

Under the scrutiny of the judge and the audience and their competition they showed up and did their best. They kept coming back. Getting back up after being knocked down or falling down or failing.
I was volunteering yesterday doing scoring at the competition and as I sat there helping enter and verify scores I couldn’t stop thinking about my playing and coaching days.
How many kids kept coming back, kept smiling as they walked into the rink, that’s what I was thinking about in that moment.

As a player each game provided a new experience, sure it was nerve wracking, but exciting at the same time, it was another opportunity to get back up after perhaps being knocked down or failing or an opportunity to keep building towards something special.
As a coach it was my responsibility to be there to teach, motivate and inspire, but it was also my job to ensure they continued to grow, develop and learn from their experiences whether good, bad or ugly.
You know something they kept coming back, willing to put themselves out there, willing to learn, willing to take risks, willing to fail and do it all over again and that to me is pretty damn awe-inspiring.
Every athlete, and it doesn’t matter if their Highland Dancers or hockey players need to know that their efforts, resiliency and willingness to keep coming back every day is truly remarkable.
Sometimes the smallest victories of the mind, have the most profound effect.
Parents and coaches alike should appreciate and applaud that resiliency, because that’s the true sign of character.
To all of the athletes out there, keep coming back, keep moving forward, because your going to love where your path will take you.