It’s that time of year again.
Today was the first Saturday of Church-ball.
Makes me want to gag.
I’m not an athlete in any way, shape,
or form of the word.
If you have met me you would know
this.
That doesn’t mean that I don’t
play sports. I really enjoy Ultimate Frisbee. I feel like I’m quite good at it
actually. Racquetball has played a part in my past. I still enjoy playing it
somewhat but my times playing it are so far in between that I feel like I have
to relearn how to play. There’s also the problem of being ambidextrous. There
was one Thanksgiving I went to play with my cousin and uncle and I forgot which
hand dominant I was in racquetball.
(I write with my right hand, eat with
my left hand, and I’m left eye dominant which effects how I shoot guns. I’m
also left handed when I golf… if I golf. I witch feet while playing soccer. It’s
been a while since I have played baseball or football that I forget which hand
I throw with so I do both. But I’m not a much of an athlete so it doesn’t
matter much to me.)
But the one sport I can’t stand
is basketball. This loathing stems from what we in the LDS church call Church-ball.
There has be better ways to build team power or whatever they are trying to
accomplish with this program. The fact that every boy had to participate was
bull. I was not in the best of shape. And having some team players being more
about winning didn’t help. So my short 5 min on the court during the game was
more than enough.
The fact that Mutual (the weekly
Youth program for the Church on a weeknight) time was taken to practice was
also stupid. It might be horrible but towards the end I’m glad that I was too
busy in the winter to attend Mutual. The weeks that I did another kid and I
would sit on the stage with curtains closed working on homework and other stuff
while the other Young Men would spend their time practicing.
The fact that I didn’t have a knack
for the game but was force to participate was aggravating and I still have
those feelings if you couldn’t tell. But it seem to drive an even bigger wedge
between me and the other Young Men, because there wasn’t already a big enough
one already.
I think that I enjoy Ultimate Frisbee
because I have felt like I have contributed. I haven’t felt that in any other
team sport that I have played. So I am not pumped up when people want to get together
to play sports. Throwing a ball around or kicking a soccer ball around is fun. Disc
golf is a blast. Kick ball is always fun. Volley ball is okay. Lawn games like
croquet don’t count as sports. Those are games. Same with night games. I do
like those very much. But I am not an athlete.
I’m not saying that the program of
Church-ball has to be taken out, even though I do like the sound of that, but it
shouldn’t be mandatory. Being forced to do things that have no relevance to me
just makes me want to hate it. I do not like basketball. I have watched games
with roommates and have enjoyed aspects of it, but it is not something that I seek
for in ways of recreation, playing or watching.
I am glad that my testimony was
not based on what happened during Mutual. The spiritual stuff happened on
Sunday. Scouts and the other stuff happened on Wednesday or Thursday depending
on what ward we were in. Maybe someday I will understand why the Mutual program
is in place or what I gained from it after getting my Eagle Scout award.
I’m glad that I didn’t come
across this on my mission in Russia. Maybe Church-ball is something that exists
outside the US, but I pray not. It’s hard to feel included in the Church as a convert
in a foreign country, like Russia, we don’t need this forced on the youth of
the church worldwide.
These points of view are from my
point as a male. What the Young Women did was a whole n’other beast. One I do
not and care not to understand.
Kind of a rant blog, but I am
confident that someday all things will make sense.
God Bless! Until Next Time!
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