PLAYING WITH BALLS

A recent conversation got me thinking. Maybe it is just a woman thing or maybe I still have childish tendencies when it comes to games with balls.

The in length conversation was about my seven year old son and his playing football. The football club is run after school and due to the rain has been cancelled. I questioned the why they could not have football in the school hall; to this the reply was simple. ‘Kids don’t want to pass the ball weave in and out of 3 other players and tap the ball in. No they simply want to just boot the ball as hard as possible at the goal. They don’t care what direction it goes just want to kick the ball in the goal. School halls have windows.’  

This made a lot of sense to me and for those who know me the best will know why this called in to question my own behaviour.

When I ‘play’ football, I say play but by all means I don’t play! I, like kids simply just want to toe punt that ball as hard and as far as possible. Often my wicked right foot will send a ball a reasonable distance, the direction however is another matter. (Don’t stand there!)

Now I can smash up the balls on the pool table like a pro! Honest! I can smash em up and the balls them selves leap from their cosy felt table cloth. (I wouldn’t stand there either)

I love tennis. However, the people I play with don’t like me playing tennis. I like to swing and smack. Again not having much control as to where the ball goes makes for my opponents to do lots of running around. So I either need an unlimited amount of balls to hand or some ball boys/girls to run around fetching my awesomely hit balls.

Now I might sound like a total knob saying all this but I have to admit I can whack a golf ball with the golf club as well. Again, the fact it might be in a straight line? – Pure fluke!

Looking at it now, it is not hard to see my mentality when it comes to playing with balls. Could I slow it down, take some time; think about what I am doing when I am hitting the ball? Of course. Could I take the time to learn the hit the white ball in a strategic manner that will help me pot balls with intention rather than pure fluke and unpredictability? Sure.

Where is the fun in that?

Maybe it is not difficult to notice that I may have an impulsivity issues. Maybe I am a show off, ‘look at me,’ kind of a one trick pony though, I can boot the ball – over there. But that’s all I can do. I would not stand in front of me in any event. As if you are a guy you might be in danger of having another ball wedged with your own balls.

Could how I approach the above named games with balls and my approach to the game of life be seen as the same? If I stopped rushing in and just smacking the crap out of what I am doing and stood back, took a second, take a moment to breath, to take it all in, to take time to think about what I am doing, what I need to do, what I want to do, where I need/want it to go, and use a bit of strategy, would I be better at the game of life?

Would it surprise you that I am shit at chess?