The memories I have of physical education and sports classes are some of the best. The teachers and then the coaches that I had contributed a lot to that.
Physical education
From physical education and sports classes, I learned what fair play means to any type of relationship. I don’t always get it right, but I have something to look at when I realize I’ve made a mistake.
I win if I am better than others. I am not tripping anyone, I don’t pull the shirt, I don’t spit. Yes, sometimes I am cussing.
I learned to respect and not look down on those who do not have my qualities (as an athlete, in this instance). I certainly don’t reach the performances they have in other fields either. I have to learn from everyone and each of them. Everyone might look down on me in turn.
My belief that sport is not a punishment also stems from that time.
If you don’t put away all the balls, you are qualified for 20 squats.
If you talk during class, you take two running laps.
What arm twists are these, it’s like you’re made of rags.
Sound familiar with all of these?
Squats develop leg strength, keep them in good shape, and improve balance. So they are not a punishment, but a wonderful invention for health. A few inventive people from Cluj, Romania, who were probably punished in their turn once, made squats a ticket for public transport.
Running laps is one of the easiest methods of an effective cardio workout and one of the safest ways to stay in shape. So they are not a punishment. Or they should not be passed to this chapter.
Correcting body movements is done by personal example. Whether we are talking about children or adults. Not by admonition or humiliation. Self-image is formed over time and in this process, the perception of one’s own body is an extremely important part. If you hit here in childhood, the scars remain for life. Deeper or not, but they will be there.
It is natural to reject, consciously or not, any activity that we associate with punishment. Have you ever thought, during the times when you keep putting off getting to the gym or doing any form of exercise, that maybe, somewhere well hidden, is this way of perceiving sport? As a tedious thing, as a humiliation, or as a punishment once received in childhood.
When does the sports class start?
One of my passions is tennis. I wasn’t a performance player, it’s a sport I discovered in my adulthood, but which I practice with great joy.
As I think it happens in any country that at one time has great champions in a sport, in Romania the number of children practicing tennis has increased in recent years. Many also come to the tennis courts where I play.
Following them closely come parents, grandparents, and other relatives. I name their bearers. Only in my thoughts, do not think otherwise. I was just telling you that I learned fair play. Bearers of sports bags or all kinds of other things.
Sports class does not start when the child enters the court. Sports class begins when the child prepares the equipment (correct or not, that’s it, they are going to learn) and carries their bags. The child knows exactly what it is in the bag and doesn’t argue with the bearers that they didn’t put what and how it was necessary.
Yes, another thing I learned from physical education classes. To be responsible for my actions. Not to look for culprits. I don’t have what I need for sports class. It means I didn’t do what I should have done. Me.
When does sports class end?
Yes, right. When the little athlete collects the things and puts them in the bag. Correct or not, that’s it, they are going to learn. Then say hello, possibly thanks, and leave the court carrying the stuff.
They are already tired, you’ll say, why shouldn’t someone help them?
Because it won’t help them. I am not absurd and I take into account the existence of exceptions.
According to the dictionary:
Exception is a thing that is excluded from a general statement or does not follow a rule.
If the general rule is already established and well known, the exception will be easily spotted.
I am completing a statement above the sports class ends at home, in front of the laundry basket.
What if they don’t know how to organize the sports bag?
Of course, they don’t. They were not born with this information. How to put the equipment in the bag, how to take things out, how to sort what needs to be washed, everything is done several times together with the parent. Together.
Together is entirely something else than not at all. The child can not and does not know how. The adult is the model and the example. Not the chief bearer. Any further complaint will not be considered.
We wish a nice and easy life for our children, but we make it difficult by letting them learn in adulthood the things they could have acquired much earlier. We chop off the responsibilities they should naturally have and later the whole society demands that they be fully responsible. A society where no one wants to be the bearer.
