“If you want to be enthusiastic, act enthusiastic.” ― Dale Carnegie

When did you last attend a kid’s sporting event?

The small grandstands were full. I was wearing my safety helmet in case of a tumble down the concrete steps.  Vigorous voices from moms around me were hollering at a fever pitch. There was a man sitting behind and on separate occasions he was providing very specific and detailed instructions aloud to members of the team down on the ice. I was again wearing my heavy winter coat. It was an ice hockey game and inside near the rink I could never feel my hands in the arctic climate. My four-year-old granddaughter skipped and danced up and down the rows, pulling off her sweatshirt, looking for another snack in the goodie bag I always had for her.

Our little family was gathered for the entire weekend of the tournament. Teams from the Dallas area were joined by others from Austin, Houston, Oklahoma and Louisiana. To sit and listen to the fans, one would think each game was a do or die contest. The rink was a mad house filled with three- to four-foot-tall hockey players. It still amazes me that these kids are all able to zoom around on their skates. Some are incredibly fast. They get knocked on their blocks and haul themselves back up just like that. I’m certain lessons are being learned. When members of the team are off the ice and on the bench I can see one of the coaches giving advice and instruction. I love seeing that. It’s one big learning experience.  At the end of each game, the players are rewarded with a game puck for a great play. My grandson has each of his proudly displayed above his bed.

I don’t think you can praise children enough

These are teams of seven- and eight-year-olds. Almost all boys. There are a few girls on some teams. There was even one team of all girls at the tournament. I couldn’t figure out where they were from. Don’t tell anyone, but I think they played better than any of the boy teams. Did you see the USA Women’s Ice Hockey just won the gold!

The moms were definitely screaming the loudest during each game. Hockey teams have up to eleven players and rotate four on the ice (goalie stays) every few minutes. Our cheering section knows every child’s first name and chances are you are sitting next to his mom or dad. Sometimes, during a pause, a player would hear his name and thumbs up to his parents and the crowd. Those boys may never have a more enthusiastic cheering section for the rest of their lives. Today, 11-15 year-olds’ feelings of support from home has been on the decline. 

“There is one person who utters more earnest, hopeful, pleading prayers for you than anyone else in the world—your mother.” ― Richelle E. Goodrich

I kept wondering about the lower intensity cheers when the players missed the score or didn’t hit the puck. With these close quarters it’s not like the anonymity of sitting in a stadium. Everyone knows everyone. No wise cracks allowed.  Why do I think about those kinds of things? But mostly, I was making rude remarks to those around me about the hefty goalie the Louisiana team put on the ice. Must have been a really big brother in an extra-large uniform. Couldn’t get a single puck into that net.

There were four games in one weekend. The expectation was that players would be taken out of school on Friday to participate. I guess it happens all the time for school sports. Our team had one at 7am on Saturday! My granddaughter was a great sport up. The last game was on a Sunday evening. She and I stayed home, had our own adventures, kept school night bedtime while reading a great story or two.

More children living in single-parent homes here than anywhere in the world

Interesting to me was how involved in the details the parents were – and needed to be to keep up with the scheduling and managing their other children. The boys on the team were typical first and second graders. My grandson couldn’t even remember one game from the other. One big play he had from another. He had a great time, but it was all in the moment. He and the other guys must have seven- and eight-year-old brains. Just the size they need right now.

Our team won and lost. A weekend filled up with rowdy action on the ice and building memories with their team. It was a shared experience for families – something becoming too rare these days. Snack bags, sweatshirts and away games all planned out by these ferocious moms. Moms that keep the world running. Moms that are forever in your corner, cheering you on – whether you make the goal or not.

“Nothing is as good as it used to be, and it never was. The “golden age of sports,” the golden age of anything, is the age of everyone’s childhood.” ― Ken Dryden, Canadian hockey player (1970-79), won six Stanley Cups.