It’s basketball season. It’s a climate controlled sport unlike lacrosse. It’s an indoor, confined sport, unlike lacrosse. It’s a pad-less lightweight uniform sport unlike lacrosse yet all these factors make it a warm and sweaty sporty, unlike lacrosse. I love when Jack plays LAX and I love basketball too but I thought I would get reprieve from jock-stink.

LAX is outdoors, open space, fresh air and even with the stink of wet pads and smelly guys who leave their ‘cups’ in the back of my SUV, nothing trumps basketball stink. Nothing.

Both my children play basketball, each of them good in their own right. Amelia does not possess the ability to flat out jock-stink like Jack. (Although Nike black socks  make her stinky.) I picked him up from practice the other night with his teammate Tyler.  The smell was so overwhelming that both Amelia and I had to shrink down in our shirts for air.  I think even Tyler caught his breathe once or twice.  How can this be worse than 94 degree heat on a LAX field? Impossible.

Perhaps, but well worth it. Jack plays on both the travel team and the modified team.  He played on Thursday for the modified team and scored a beautiful basket.  The 7th graders don’t usually play much and the coach rotated the boys in.  It was good.

Tonight we played a rival team that is arguably number 1 in the council.  Good players, good coaches.  We held our own with the boys giving it their all. On the way to the game I said to Jack just relax and don’t think. Just play and have fun. and if you score, you owe me a wave.  He agreed to a wink. I took it.

Jack had a great game.  He scored 17 points and defensively played like you read about.  He has worked with a coach and practiced daily since the spring.  It was  such a joy to see his success as an individual player and a member of his team.  I hope it allows him to become a more confident player.

After a few minutes, the coach took him out and swapped some new players in.  He scored, I believe 6 points at this point.  I was so excited and I looked across the court and he gave me that exaggerated wink with a nod of the head like he did when he first learned to wink. I cried.  I  welled up as I looked at this man he was becoming and the scoring did not matter, the game did not matter. What mattered was my little boy was growing up and I am not sure if I am ready for that.  It’s coming whether I am or not.

After the game, he actually let me hug him and kiss that still soft cheek in front of all those guys. SCORE for mom! It was worth the stink.