A few weeks ago I went on a great date with someone other than my husband. He was caring, funny, full of conversation and clearly loves me for who I am. And when he ran into someone from his past it was clear to me what a positive influence he's had on many, many young soccer players. That's right- my date was my wonderful father.
It started as an innocent excuse for both of us to get out of the house and try a few different beers at the Tap House. We talked about beer, camping, Gopher hockey, Josie and life in general. It was a rare chance to spend some one on one time with him since my Muskie fishing days became limited once Josie (or was it Brent?) came into the picture. The more we talked about the past, present and future the more I realized that this was more than a chance to just enjoy a couple of beers. It had become a chance to affirm my adult relationship (dare I say friendship too?) with my dad. It turns out that the input he annoyingly put into my teenage life is exactly the sort of input and insight I seek from him today. Funny how the tables have turned but I'm thankful he stuck by me through those glorious teenage years.
As we were finishing up, a dapper young man came up an introduced himself as one of Ted's former teammates. After a brief internal photo flashback it was easy to put two and two together and see the man this player had become. He made the extra effort to say hello and openly inquired about Dad and the family. To me, especially because neither of us immediately recognized him, it would have been easy for him to stay at his table of friends, enjoy his beer and let us walk on by. But no- he made the effort to come over and say hello. To me, this shows that he is more than just a polite guy. To me, this shows that the time and influence Dad invested in him as a youth player made an impact on his adult life. And that all those hours on the pitch were really about more than just soccer. In the end it made me even more thankful to have Dad in my life as a coach, grandparent to my child, Muskie guide, friend and father. I love you Dad.
