A couple of years ago, Mister joined some mates in their basketball team. They played year round in summer and winter competitions. Mister had never played before. He took sometime, but his confidence grew and he improved week on week. Let's face it, he has the height for the game.
Each competition round would bring it's challenges. Mostly, they were placed in grades that were well above their skill set and would routinely get beaten but they kept going and honing their skills as a team.
The winter comp proved their most successful. They were equally matched with the other teams and there were some great competitive games during the competition rounds. So much so, they made it to the final rounds and ended up in the grand final having to face the number one team on the leaderboard.
Michael and I both went along to the game with a some of the other parents from our team and the boys had five friends from school show up to support them as well. The opposing team's supporters took up 3/4 of the basketball court stands. They had parents, extended family members, and all their school mates.
When the game started, it was clear why the opposing team were the premier winners of the comp. They had great skills, they attacked and defended well, and had obviously played as a team for many years. They also were very muscly, biceps and triceps all of them. Their aggressiveness was a little confronting at first. They were very vocal on the court - fist pumping, yelling, and their supporters were just as loud. Compare this to our boys, who are all quiet, lean and lanky.
It was a very close game. Our boys stayed their steady course and plugged away, they had an early lead but the opposition fought back and the last five minutes of the game were tense. When the final whistle blew, the only indication we had won was the silence from the opposing team and their supporters.
The Quiet Achievers.
