From the Other Side

There has been so much to look forward to between the last day of finals on Davidson's campus (December 18th) to the first day of the spring semester (January 12th.) I've been visiting many families and friends over this extended time away from my current residence and it's all been terrific, complete with many highlighted moments. Two of these highlights from Northern Virginia and Pittsburgh came in watching Fairfax High School battle Westfield on Friday night and Paul VI compete on Saturday.

Now I've only known Fairfax High School Swimming and Diving from the coaching perspective and the unique experience from watching behind the glass certainly was a challenge. But observing kids you used to coach and opponents you used to try to defeat from up top was enjoyable, if not unique. The races and dives came and went and once the meet concluded, the best moments soon followed. Being able to congratulate so many members of the team made the trip worth-while. I wanted to pull 70 chairs together right there in the Wakefield parking lot and have a huge talk with the group about how much I missed them and how much I think about their season as it unfolds. There is never enough time to get caught-up with every one's happenings in a 5-second handshake or hug. It was special, though, and it couldn't have commenced my Christmas any better.

The following day I saw Michelle (Patty's youngest sister and my favorite person) swim for Paul VI. Michelle had not swum on any other team other than Villa during the summer and in this her senior season, she decided to dedicate three months to swimming for a more intense program. Not only did she do well in the relays, but she looked terrific in the 200 freestyle and the 100 butterfly, two events she would not have dreamed of swimming just one month earlier. Two other Villa swimmers, Marcus and Connor toughed it out in difficult events, leaving their comfort zones of sprint freestyle to face more challenging obstacles head-on, like the 200 IM and 500 free.

When you cultivate these relationships with athletes, witnessing their successes is a privilege. To see Fairfax guys and girls beat Westfield and to see those PVI swimmers makes my so glad to be associate with athletics. It's ironic how, in the previous entry, I wrote about what it takes to be a fan. Until last weekend, I never thought about the transformation of coach to fan and how can have such a profound effect on me. I may not always be the coach for those kids for that season, but I'll always be their fan.