Two things happened last week that were connected for me.
First my daughter finished up her AAU basketball season and the NBA Draft took place. This is our daughter’s second season playing in this league which consist of travel to tournaments each weekend where two games are played each day. To her dismay (later she will appreciate it) it is a family affair. No really, we enjoy it, we are invested in it and we plan our schedule around her game tip-offs. We drive her to the games and this year they all took place within the state of Connecticut.
Second, the NBA Draft took place; and as a basketball Mom watching the draft it was really moving. A large number of the draftees were overcome with emotion. It appeared to be raw, honest and an unscripted pouring out of gratefulness for their life journey that got them to their NBA Draft moment. Each young man whether their parents were alive or not credited that moment to their Mom or their Dad or both. While the players sacrificed with time, effort and pain it was fitting that they recognized the sacrifices that their families made for them too.
Life happens one play at a time and sometimes there is not always a goal in mind. In some instances I would insert the word desire for goal. We do things that are hard and we keep doing them because we want to get better, we want to compete at the highest level but most importantly we have the tendency to work hard for or on something because we love it, we enjoy it and yes we recognize that we are good at it.
We support our daughter’s basketball desire because she loves it. It is that simple. The plus is we truly enjoy watching her play. We have no illusions of WNBA but the character that sports helps to build is priceless. It teaches her to work hard, to play hard, to work together as a team; and, ultimately to be selfless. I remember watching a documentary about the great Pat Summit. She was the women’s head basketball coach for the University of Tennessee. She told her players that you don’t have time to feel bad about yourself because you should be so concerned about your teammate. So true and all of these sports lessons can be applied to other areas of our lives.
Life happens and we participate in a lot of activities but by the grace of God we all hope to experience a moment in time where the hard work and sacrifices all come together; and, we are overcome with emotion and the gratefulness overflows.
Sonya Ruff Jarvis, is the Managing Member of Jarvis Consultants and the Founder of the eRetailer Summit and JC Event Group. Sonya has spent most of her career visiting headquarters across global industries. An expert in the field, Sonya has been published in numerous retail industry b-to-b publications. Sonya shares her experiences in her book series: Mindful Minutes, A Marketer’s Journey through Business: is now available to purchase on AMAZON.
Sonya has a M.B.A. in Marketing. She is married and has a daughter and they live in Fairfield County Connecticut. Follow Sonya on twitter at @jarvisconsult or @eretailersummit.