Sweet Smile of Success

Nick had his first soccer game of the year. If you remember, Nick played a bit of competitive soccer last spring and played well enough that the coaches wanted him to come back and play in the fall. He stated he wanted to play football instead. Well, it is almost spring again and he decided (with just a bit of persuasion) to play soccer again, but this time for the less competitive AYSO organization. He was a bit surprised to see two of his former teammates (and very good players) lined up against him on Saturday morning. Seems the two players decided to take a year off from competitive soccer and have fun. I guess that might say something about our emphasis on sports when kids tell their parents they just want to play for fun again.

Well, Nick had fun Saturday. He played hard and really looked like he was having a blast. Even when his team went down by 7 goals, he kept working and playing. That is why it was particularly enjoyable to see the smile on his face after he scored his team's first goal of the season late in the game. It was especially gratifying for him in that he scored against one of his buddies from last year's team and probably the best player on the field. Well, maybe I should just show you the photo.

And a few more.