Portage Sports Stories | Busy schedules don't allow us to say 'thank you'

The truth of the matter is, we never knew how busy our parents were.

And that was OK.

It was designed to be that way.

We were the kids.

We were supposed to be doing kid things.

Living in our kid worlds.

All we knew is that things happened just as they were supposed to.

We made it to practices early.

We arrived at games dressed, ready and on time.

We always had our water bottles and they were always filled with ice.

Our bags were always packed.

Our uniforms were washed, cleaned and ready to go. Even if there was a game the night before.

There was always a dinner snuck into the tightly packed schedule

There were always postgame snacks or a trip to the local ice cream shop.

There was always time for us.

We never wondered how.

We didn’t know what we didn’t know.

What we never saw was how our parents made it all happen.

Every single day.

We never saw their frantic days at work so they could leave on time — because losing even just 5 to 10 m minutes would jeopardize us being late.

We never saw the loads of laundry being done long after we fell asleep. Maybe even into the AM hours.

We never saw the bags being packed the night before or while we were at school.

We never realized our parents put off their dinners until 10 p.m. or later.

As we got older, responsibilities began to fall onto our shoulders, but up until a certain age, all we knew is that these things just happened.

We never saw anything.

And, wow, were there so many things that could have been seen.

It is like seeing the tip of an iceberg peeking out above the rippling water, not knowing that a monolith of sheer greatness sits hidden beneath the surface.

The mystery is not fully unlocked until you become a parent yourself.

Suddenly you find yourself in the daily race against time. To stay on time.

A race to make days happen as intended. To stay on schedule.

Hopefully with more smiles than stress.

Hurry to get everything done.

Hurry to get everywhere.

Sometimes, you feel hurried to do nothing at all and you wonder what the big rush is all about.

The rush will be another monolithic figure: Time itself.

It looms and will be felt when all the rushing is over. And you wish you could return to the nights of hectic schedules and crowded calendars.

Time taunts and it stops for absolutely no one.

So if you find yourself living in the stress of your daily race, choose instead to be the silent hero.

Be the reason that things happen for your child without them knowing or caring how.

Let them live in their kid world for now.

Doing kid things.

If you are a coach, create a habit to remind your players to say thank you to their moms, dads and grandparents for bringing them to games and practices. It may allow them to start seeing what they have not seen yet.

I can tell you one thing, as a young child athlete, I never told my parents thank you enough.

I didn’t know what I didn’t know.

I didn’t know what they had to do to make things happen every day. I didn’t know what they sacrificed.

And that was OK.

I was just a kid living in my kid world.

They designed it to be that way.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Tom Nader's Portage Sports Stories for Sunnday, May 29