David Beckham?

This may or may not come as a surprise to you, but I was very competitive as a child. Very. I always wanted to win, and I always wanted to be the best at everything.

I remember once in fifth grade (my most competitive year) when I wrote a report about Japan. I chose Japan because my dad had served his mission there and had a geisha doll with a tiny fan that we always wanted to play with. I remember pulling out the old-as-the-hills encyclopedia and reading all about Japan. I spent quite some time tracing a map of the islands, labeling each one. I thought it was a masterpiece and was sure I would get 100% on the report. And so I was devastated when I didn't. I cried when I got my score (if I remember correctly, I got 90%--a travesty). I'm sure my teacher felt horrible for me, because the next time I did a report (on Ted Williams), I got 100%. Thank you very much.

Not only did I want to be the best at everything, but I hated to lose. I was never a poor sport (I don't think I was, but I could be wrong), but I always had a hard time hiding my frustration when I lost. My dad was always giving me a very specific piece of advice: "Chill out!" And for the most part, I have. I have (unfortunately) had to deal with losing more than I would like to admit. I stopped crying so much about losing, and realized that it's okay if I'm not the best at everything.

But I still don't like it. And I am seeing a lot of that in Damon. He definitely wants to be the best at everything and gets instantly frustrated if things aren't easy. He participated in a free basketball class when he was 3 (in Columbus, where he was the only white boy in the class), and felt he didn't match up with the rest of the kids in his class. He refused to play and we took a hiatus from sports. But Jeff isn't ready to turn him loose to singing and dancing. He wants him to give sports a chance. And so, we signed him up to play soccer.

Damon was very worried about it, especially after his first practice. He didn't understand that just because you fall down, it doesn't mean you're a bad player. He had his first game last night, and Jeff promised him a special treat if he tried his best and didn't give up. And I have to say, we were pleasantly surprised with his effort. He wasn't the best on the team, but he wasn't the worst either. He held his own out there, and popped up every time he fell. And although he was still worried about losing ("I don't want to lose," he confided in me before the game), no one was keeping score, so he could try not to think about what the score was (although he knew).

He was thrilled for his teammates when they scored a goal, and is excited to go back. In fact, last night in our family prayer he said, "we're thankful I'm good at soccer." Yes, we are. Actually, we're glad he's not rolling around on the ground crying because he's not the best.