A Time To Win

To everything there is a season,
a time for every purpose under the sun.
A time to be born and a time to die;
a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
a time to kill and a time to heal ...
a time to weep and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn and a time to dance ...
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to lose and a time to seek;
a time to rend and a time to sew;
a time to keep silent and a time to speak;
a time to love and a time to hate;
a time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8


Today was my son and husbands’ moment in Soccer aside from winning the gold cup last year.
As usual, I missed another one of those desirable church sales being held in Merrickville, but definitely today I had to be present for my son's game. He and his dad had defied the doctor's orders to absolutely not play any soccer of any kind or for that matter any sport at all!

Of course this never works on my husband and like father, my son followed my husband this morning saying {that after a little over 32 hours since he started his medication for Shingles} he was feeling much better and wanted to try and play.
They were playing against the Mustangs and this year they have quiet a good team considering that they didn’t even personally pick the team.
Today was not “a time to lose” but “a time to seek” a win over the never beaten Mustangs.

Tyler played the full game; while I worried that he might just get ill. They played fabulous till half time keeping the Mustangs from scoring. But the opposing team wasn’t use to the shut down on their scoring. By now they should have had an easy six goals. They finally found a break in our team’s defense and scored their only goal.

The second half began and the boys played not as enthusiastically as before when without warning the kid with the strong Brit accent {Nick}; scored. The team went in frenzy, hugging and patting each other on the back and so did the parents in the stands. That’s all they had needed for the momentum to spiral to higher expectations; they now wanted to win. The team had gelled; now to get that winning goal.

Years of coaching my son and having a keen sense of timing my husband found an opportune time in the ending minutes to switch Rocky with Tyler; totally unexpected by us or the opposing coach. Tyler only moments on the court seized the ball and scored making it a 2/1 lead. The boys jumped for joy, once again in an eruption of happy emotions and knew that in the next following minutes if successful in keeping the Mustangs from scoring they would win this game. The enthusiasm was so revved up that the boys subbed too soon, ending with one of our players getting a yellow card. It didn’t matter, the whistle blew; they had won.

Yes, it was only a young boy’s soccer league game but to them it was a moment of sweet victory over a hard undefeated team. From this moment on they had become a team; “The Celtics”. Overjoyed with their winning game, my son and his dad bragged about what a great coaching move his dad had made, probably his best yet and how Tyler had scored the winning goal.

The cell went off and I answered the call. It was my daughter. “Mom, Sally Ann called and said that you won the auction for the soccer window box frame”. I had completely forgotten that two weeks ago I had bid $27 dollars for a beautiful soccer window box; starting bid $25. It had a football, soccer history written on old newsprints, a cleat and cup. I thought how lovely it would be if I got it for the family or for Ty and put all of their past soccer history mementos in the case. I looked at the auction date; it was for the 27th of October~ Emma’s birthday. Being a little superstitious I thought why not and put the bid of $27 dollars.

When I went to pick the frame up the price had dropped to $25 dollars. No other bid had been made.
I had found my treasures for the day in watching my kid play… scoring the winning goal and feeling much better, my husband gloating in his expert coaching abilities and I winning the soccer window box frame to add one more memory of a father and son’s soccer game victory. Today was a beautiful day even in its dark, cold and rainy attire.

Annabelle