That post title was on one of the cups at a party we went to today. While to the rest of the world it might have been a regular Saturday, almost the whole city of Louisville stopped for the Kentucky Derby. I learned lots of things about horse racing today — betting, terminology, tradition, etc. In the pools going at our neighbor’s party, my wife and won the first three…..by picking out of a hat. I might as well have been playing slot machines. Anyway, we spent all afternoon over there while all the kids had a ball playing from neighbor house to neighbor house to neighbor house. It was a nice introduction to the Derby fever that takes over for a week or two here. Some day we might actually make it to the track.
We started the day out at our soccer game. We still lost but things went much better. First off, I recruited one of the dads to act as my assistant coach. His sole job was to manage the off field players. That helped immensely and let me keep my concentration on focusing the players and shouting encouragement. (Thanks for your help Coach George!!!!!) Play time was pretty even for each player and they are slowly becoming more aggressive towards the ball. My one player who at the first practice ran away from the ball and at the last game actually ran towards the ball, finally kicked the ball in the game…..TWICE! I was so proud of him and to me that was worth a score or two. It was a huge leap for this timid kid.
I was able to end the day sneaking up to the pond down the street on a neighbor’s farm. My son and I joined our neighbor Larry (the one who has helped me out on several occasions) and his son for some impromptu fishing time. We caught and released a few bluegill and the boys got some more time of playing. They enjoyed reeling in the fish, throwing them back and looking for frogs. As the sun set and the bobbers on the pond became harder to see, I soaked in the memory. It is exactly the kind of country living I had hoped for in moving out here. I look forward to many more of these “rest stops” on the road journey of life. I equate it to the scenic views along the roadside where you stop, get out and just enjoy the beautiful scenery. Life has many of those similar stops but so many times we just whiz on by.
…..Dan at aslowerpace dot net
