Soccer love
Dec. 11th, 2005 10:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
starzki
I just watched the HBO special,
Dare to Dream, the documentary
about the women's US soccer
team. Specifically, it was about Mia Hamm, Christine Lilly,
Brandi Chastain, Michelle Akers, Julie Foudy, and the other seminal
players of the Women's US team that won the '96 Olympics, the '99
Women's World Cup, and the 2004 Olympics.
I started getting all misty at the very beginning of the show, cried a couple of times (when Mia's brother died and when they found out that they sold out Giant's Stadium at the '99 World Cup), and was just kind of wrought overall through the 90 minute documentary.
I think a big part of it is that I remember all of that so well. I can't really say that they're my heroes because I'm not young enough for them to have influenced me. I've played soccer since I was six and was playing all through the years they were playing. I'm only five or ten years younger than they are. I was aware of them, knew what they were doing, but nothing they did affected whether or not I played. But they sure affected how I played.
I knew of them. I knew that they were doing pretty much all of the same things that I was doing, only they were doing them ten times better than I was. What they did and what they represented was everything good and pure about me at the time. There were times that I felt like I was killing myself, pushing myself so hard, but it was okay because I knew that they were doing the same thing and I loved them for it. It's hard to explain.
Watching that documentary was like watching all the good parts of my heart. The camaraderie of teammates, the sacrifices you have to make, the friendships that you make, and the depth of strength that you can find within yourself makes everything worth it. It's just a silly little game where the main rule is "no hands," but I honestly think it saved my life. I would not be myself if not for soccer. I'd probably have been pregnant in high school, with five kids by now, unhappy in whatever I was doing. But I did have soccer, and I think that's how I've had the confidence to believe in myself and to take risks and live my life in a way that makes me happy. Beyond happy.
But back to the show: I remember the '96 Olympics and feeling just so cheated that they didn't air the final game. God forbid the American people miss diving.
I also remember the '99 World Cup. Funny story there: I was working at my job in the hospital the day the final game was played between China and the US. I worked in x-ray and we had a TV in our waiting room and I turned it on and managed to keep an eye on it through the whole game. Suddenly, after the double overtime, we got really busy. While both teams were taking the penalty kicks, I wouldn't let anyone through our waiting room until all the kicks were taken. There were like three people waiting in wheelchairs from the floors and one person from the ER and I told them all we were watching history in the making and they could have their pictures done after we saw who won. (Don't worry, there were no pressing emergency issues. They all had x-rays that could wait for ten minutes.) And we watched and when Chastain scored that last goal, I can't even explain. I was probably in the middle of a 16 hour shift and I walked on air for the rest of the weekend. It was more than happiness. It was validation. It was everything.
And it's probably sad that I'm still so hung up on soccer. But that team represented what sports and athletes were actually were supposed to do for their fans. They were athletes and beautiful and amazing people. When I look at them and then look at professional football or baseball players, I'm embarrassed for the overpaid jackasses who don't deserve the adulation laid at their feet.
And I want to be Michelle Akers when I grow up.
I discovered at 15 that I had run out of talent when it came to soccer, so I decided that I was going to make up for talent with a winning attitude. It took me through high school and college and it's made me a better person. I can't say that about anything else in my life. I've tried my whole life to try and describe how important soccer is to me. I think I've just discovered that there are no words that even come close to explaining the full impact it could have. It's just a game, but it's the best part of me, too.
Wow. That got long and it didn't even come close to a fraction of what I meant. I can only say, "I love soccer," and hope that sufficiently covers it.
I started getting all misty at the very beginning of the show, cried a couple of times (when Mia's brother died and when they found out that they sold out Giant's Stadium at the '99 World Cup), and was just kind of wrought overall through the 90 minute documentary.
I think a big part of it is that I remember all of that so well. I can't really say that they're my heroes because I'm not young enough for them to have influenced me. I've played soccer since I was six and was playing all through the years they were playing. I'm only five or ten years younger than they are. I was aware of them, knew what they were doing, but nothing they did affected whether or not I played. But they sure affected how I played.
I knew of them. I knew that they were doing pretty much all of the same things that I was doing, only they were doing them ten times better than I was. What they did and what they represented was everything good and pure about me at the time. There were times that I felt like I was killing myself, pushing myself so hard, but it was okay because I knew that they were doing the same thing and I loved them for it. It's hard to explain.
Watching that documentary was like watching all the good parts of my heart. The camaraderie of teammates, the sacrifices you have to make, the friendships that you make, and the depth of strength that you can find within yourself makes everything worth it. It's just a silly little game where the main rule is "no hands," but I honestly think it saved my life. I would not be myself if not for soccer. I'd probably have been pregnant in high school, with five kids by now, unhappy in whatever I was doing. But I did have soccer, and I think that's how I've had the confidence to believe in myself and to take risks and live my life in a way that makes me happy. Beyond happy.
But back to the show: I remember the '96 Olympics and feeling just so cheated that they didn't air the final game. God forbid the American people miss diving.
I also remember the '99 World Cup. Funny story there: I was working at my job in the hospital the day the final game was played between China and the US. I worked in x-ray and we had a TV in our waiting room and I turned it on and managed to keep an eye on it through the whole game. Suddenly, after the double overtime, we got really busy. While both teams were taking the penalty kicks, I wouldn't let anyone through our waiting room until all the kicks were taken. There were like three people waiting in wheelchairs from the floors and one person from the ER and I told them all we were watching history in the making and they could have their pictures done after we saw who won. (Don't worry, there were no pressing emergency issues. They all had x-rays that could wait for ten minutes.) And we watched and when Chastain scored that last goal, I can't even explain. I was probably in the middle of a 16 hour shift and I walked on air for the rest of the weekend. It was more than happiness. It was validation. It was everything.
And it's probably sad that I'm still so hung up on soccer. But that team represented what sports and athletes were actually were supposed to do for their fans. They were athletes and beautiful and amazing people. When I look at them and then look at professional football or baseball players, I'm embarrassed for the overpaid jackasses who don't deserve the adulation laid at their feet.
And I want to be Michelle Akers when I grow up.
I discovered at 15 that I had run out of talent when it came to soccer, so I decided that I was going to make up for talent with a winning attitude. It took me through high school and college and it's made me a better person. I can't say that about anything else in my life. I've tried my whole life to try and describe how important soccer is to me. I think I've just discovered that there are no words that even come close to explaining the full impact it could have. It's just a game, but it's the best part of me, too.
Wow. That got long and it didn't even come close to a fraction of what I meant. I can only say, "I love soccer," and hope that sufficiently covers it.
