Pick on someone your own size
-
- May
- 30
Sometimes fatherhood can seem like a series of humiliating experiences. Over the weekend I played one-on-one basketball with my eldest son at a family barbecue. It was not an even match. He’s 17 and I’m 55. He was the high scorer and top rebounder on his high school team as a junior this year. I hit half my shots into the waste paper basket next to my desk. And at 6’1â€? he’s got four inches on me.
Our game started when I attempted to hit from the outside because that’s easier than trying to drive around him. I shot and missed. He got the rebound, passed the ball to himself through my legs and then scored. It went on like that for about 20 minutes until I was saved by the burgers coming off the grill.
A colleague of mine here said that surely, I must have had mixed emotions over the game: personal humiliation but also pride in my son. Actually my feelings came down to personal humiliation and fatigue. I’m proud of my son’s athleticism when he’s beating someone his own age.
I probably should be happy that he still wants to play with me. When I asked why he wants to engage in these one-sided contests he made it sound like it was an accomplishment for him to defeat me. “You’re my dad, I’m not supposed to be able to beat you.�
And they say parents sometimes have unrealistic expectations for their children.
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, May 30th, 2007 at 4:40 pm by Len Maniace.
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