Genius

The little girls had ball Wednesday night, and their coach is a genius. Geniuses are fun to watch in action. It was raining and he pretended that the sun was shining. The kids just followed along in his same attitude like magic. They shook their wet hair out with smiles and practiced like they were in a laundry detergent commercial. He played "baseball" with a huge rubber ball, bowling it through one kids' legs. The "batter" would kick it and everyone had time to think of where they should be and where they would throw should the ball come to them. It was a great way to slow the action down enough for learners to catch on. He played emphatically in the middle of them, stopping action to remind and coach up anyone who seemed lost. His words were punctuated with clapping and back patting. The whole time he is talking to them, it is like he is talking to the highest level of player... and he calls them "All Stars" repeatedly. After the rubber ball game, he "ran lines". I hadn't seem him to do it this way before. He told the "All Stars" to line up a few yards away from him. They did. He gave the command to start running towards him. A herd of k-3 start barrelling down on him across the soaked field. Suddenly he roars "DOWN!" Every child was immediately sliding on their back in unison, hands in the air; nothing to break their fall but their skill. He showed them how each detail of their bodies should be positioned as they went from running to sliding on their backs. If someone was not quite right, everyone waited on their backs, hands up while he adjusted legs and feet and hands. My heart squeezed as i watched little Ellie just loving every minute of the hard drills in the rain and sliding with each loud "DOWN!!" only to bounce up and run to the start for more. Sadie was watching from the window of the vehicle and said "Why are they DOING that???" If he yelled at ME like that I would go on my bum too!!" When we had left the house to go to the practice, Robin had been wearing white sweat pants. I had commented on how perfectly white her pants were. "Thanks Mom!" After the practice I said "How are your white pants Rob?" She looked at me, beaming from ear to ear, rain dripping off of her hair. "Dirty!!" Genius.