Struggle Can Be Hard, But Hard is Where You Grow

By Laurie Wolt

Being a parent is hard. You don’t need me to tell you that. You already know that.

It surprised me to learn that parenting a child through youth sports would be hard. Youth sports should be purely enjoyable. It’s a fun activity. It should be easy.

But it’s not.

You probably don’t need me to tell you that either.

There are conflicts - with coaches, with teammates, with referees. Sometimes your child makes the team they are hoping to make. Sometimes they don’t. Those times of struggle can be heart wrenching - for both of you.

As a parent I wanted to make it all go away for my child. But I couldn’t. It was out of my control. All I could do was listen and give advice when I was asked. And give my daughter kleenex and a hug when the tears flowed.

Now I’m sort of grateful for those times.

My daughter has graduated from college and moved to a different state. She is teaching first grade. She has faced challenges with different cultures and different expectations.

The times she struggled at soccer, she learned resilience. She learned to stand up for herself and speak truth to power. She learned that life isn’t always fair and hard times eventually pass.

She is using all of those lessons daily.

I wouldn’t have wished struggles on my daughter during her soccer playing years. But I know that she learned a lot and I’m so proud of the person she has become.

And I’m grateful to still be able to listen and give advice when asked…even if I have to do it by FaceTime.