Girls' Soccer

Meg and I went for a walk tonight. We do that often. More and more we are like an old couple, enjoying our evenings in leisurely walks around the neighborhood. We nod to the neighbors and strangers, we "goodevening" everyone we meet on the sidewalk and smile and wave to the kids. All in all, we resemble good-natured grandparents on a stroll through the hood.

It's amazing how many little things we come across on our walks: gardens--some amazing and some quite the opposite; houses--some neatly cared for and some in different degrees of neglect; birds, cats, squirrels and other animals, etc.

Tonight, though, was the night for soccer. We passed by several soccer pitches and all had games going. And I mean OFFICIAL games--in uniforms and with refs and spectators. We couldn't resist to check a teenage-girls game. Now, I'm not a great soccer player, not even close, but I love the game. And I can recognize when someone plays well. Those girls didn't.

It was a haphazard effort in which, no matter where the ball bounced, it always seemed to have surprised the players. The limbs were flailing around the ball, mostly not connecting. Occasionally someone would manage to hit the ball and the swarm of bodies would move to whichever direction the round object rolled.

At one instance two girls came running after the ball near the side where we stood. While the ball bounced away, the slower girl tripped on the legs of the girl in front and fell. The girl in front let the ball roll out of the pitch, and stopped to help the other girl up saying "Oh my God, are you alright?"
"Yes, I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
And the girl who didn't fall ran to get the ball and handed it to the other girl with a friendly smile.

It was pathetic to watch. Where is the killer-instinct to make use of the situation and, perhaps, score? But, I guess, it's sports-made-in-Canada for you: the important thing is to be polite and nice to each other, not to win the game. Could that be the reason why all sports in Canada, except hockey to some extent, are declining? Maybe they should teach those kids to compete rather than just having fun.