Reply to Is Division 1 really a worthwhile goal?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Our kids were terrible at sports and we were so thrilled about it.  No travel teams etc to ruin our weekends.  We were quite happy to full pay for the elite colleges that they all went to, we could easily afford it, and it was all so stress free.  We always felt sorry for parents whose lives revolved around their kids' athletic pursuits.  It's all so fleeting for the vast majority, then what?  [/quote]

The vast majority of the kids play travel because they really like to play soccer.  That’s the ends, not the means.  And it keeps kids off their screens and actually gives kids more time with their parent.[/quote]

The anti-sports parents (but who weirdly read the sports threads) just don't get it.

I have a teen who is obsessed with soccer. DC might play in college or maybe not, but that's not the goal. I joke that soccer is DCs happy pill, but it's not a joke. Last year I got a really clear picture of just how much soccer keeps DC happy. DC broke his foot badly playing soccer and was out for a season. He went from being a sweet and happy good student to a sulky, moody kid whose grades dropped like a rock. He was irritable, easily angered, and often rude (a total change). He started spending hours on the phone and screens, isolated in his room. (I finally understood why parents complain so much about screens, something I hadn't experienced before). His teachers reached out to me because they were so concerned with the change in classroom behavior. His orthopedic surgeon eventually agreed to a quicker than normal return to soccer because the doctor was worried about the overall impact of not playing. I had never really understood why people complained about teenagers until that injury. Then I got it.

One month after getting cleared to play again, my sweet and physically active kid was back. No more hours on the phone or screens; he went back to voluntarily spending hours outside kicking the ball around or playing pick up when he wasn't formally practicing. No more sulking. His grades climbed right back up. He started laughing again. We have our long, enjoyable conversations on the road again. He again comes up all the time and gives me hugs. My happy, steady, sweet teenager came back. I genuinely believe that soccer literally acts as an antidepressant for my DC. I sometimes wonder how many other kids out there might react the same way to hard physical exercise. I don't know, but all I know is that I am grateful for soccer because I think it's getting my teenager through his teen years much happier and safer than he might be otherwise. Knowing what I know now, I do want him to play some form of soccer in college so he stays happy, but intramural or club would be fine. [/quote]

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