Sports Trippin'

7 mini buses. 150+ learners. 5 hours. Endless SA House Jams. 0 wins. 3 injuries. And too many laughs to count. Welcome to sports day.

Today was a day of firsts. My first sports trip in South Africa and our primary school’s first ever ladies’ soccer game in history! I love spending time with these learners at school, but it is an extra special treat to see their sparks outside of the classroom. I saw students in their element with their dance moves on the bus ride, their killer defence skills on the field, or even just their incredible organisation and support for the coaches. These kids were on fire and I couldn’t have been prouder.

Our kids competed against another local school in soccer, netball, cricket, chess, and another super cool game I never got the name of. We won innnnnnnnn nothing. But boy of boy did they play hard! Take my soccer girls for example. The word I’d use to describe these strong young ladies is resilient. First, they’ve dealt with mockery from both other learners and adults. When you tell someone you are on a ladies’ soccer team, the first reaction to such an unusual thought is unfortunately laughter. Ladies? Playing soccer? No way! Then we got to the hosting school to realise we were short 3 jerseys and 4 pairs of shorts. No problem for these creative souls. Some offered to play in pants and even tights. Then we went to meet our opponents. They were giants compared to my little shorties. “Ma’am they are so tall! And they have shoes! It's not fair.” They were right. About a third of the players had shiny new soccer cleats. They all looked down at their bare feet. It was as if they were all wincing in pain at the thought of the cleats' teeth chomping down on their toes, an ill-fated foreshadowing of what was to come.

Despite the odds, we went in full force. No water. No shoes. 16 smiles.

I wish I could say it was some fairytale ending where the underdogs pulled through for the win, but that just wasn’t our story. Not today at least. Today was brutal. We lost 0-6. But the amazing part wasn’t the final score. The amazing part was how these girls were still up for a silly photo after the game. How they shared the one full water bottle we had (Thanks Oratile!!) How they are ready to hit the ground for practice again tomorrow, and how they persisted despite what they are up against (both literally and figuratively). That is resilience. That is strength. That is ladies’ soccer.

The buses were still bumping on the way home. We didn’t have any victories to celebrate, but nothing can keep you down when DJ Maphorisa is blasting in the speakers.

Follow your sparks. Build your resilience. Enjoy the chaos.

-Coach Parsley