Coach Kathy

Ask my mom: I was not an athletic kid. My mom tried to get me into ballet, horse back riding, soccer, swim team....it didn't matter. No matter what sport my parents tried to get me into I didn't like it. So imagine my surprise earlier this fall when I decided to become a volunteer coach for Casey's U5 soccer team. Yah, I didn't believe it either.

It turns out that you don't need to know very much about soccer to coach this age group. Mostly you just need to know about coaching, and that information is viral and mostly free on the internet. I was surprised to learn that it's actually counter-productive to teach kids this age about passing, or about boundaries, or goal kicks, or positions---or anything else that sounds like "real" soccer. So here is what I have been doing instead: having the kids play tag, having the kids pretend the ball is a puppy, do the bunny hop, learn each others' names, learn how to say "good game" at the end, and try to not to celebrate too much when they score and score and score.

Because do you know what is even stranger than me coaching soccer? Having a winning team. In two of the last three games our team has absolutely devastated the opposition. Like 20 to 1. I'm not exaggerating.

The final thing that is surprising me more than anything else is that I am having a blast. Most of the kids and the other parents are, too. Casey, well, I'm not so sure about her. She spent the first game using the cones as clothing accessories, and the second game she almost fell asleep on the sidelines. But she likes playing games with me and the other kids at practice, and I think she's proud that I am her coach.

And, to tell you the truth, so am I!