Croquet

Word of the Day.......

Croquet.....n.,....lawn game with balls driven by mallets.

We used to play croquet all the time when I was a kid......My parents had a huge yard and we would run out and put up the little arches, arguing every second that someone hadn't gotten them just right.  Then we'd argue about the color of the mallets we got or the color of the balls.  Now, rest assured, the Williams ladies didn't don wonderful white gowns and the guys put on their white slacks and Ivy League sweaters for these matches......that was in the movies....and our family name was NEVER on the marquee.  Nonetheless, it was a fine time.  We played with revenge in our hearts...if you dared to try and knock my ball out of your way then I would spend the rest of the time trying to pay you back.  We were outside, we were together and we were lovingly trying to 'kill' each other.We won; we lost; we played.  I'm sure the kids of today would be bored in 3 milliseconds.....there were no bright lights...no screaming sound effects.....no background music.  But it was a fine time.  It was a family time.  I think my point this morning is that every family needs that time.  I'm not saying you can't bond over screeching, fast paced video games....grab those Wii's and have at it.  Be competitive...show a little revenge....play your heart out.  There is not much good to be said of a kid that is always 'allowed' to win.  There comes a time in every life when someone is better and is gonna beat you.  If that someone is your mom or dad....that's ok.  Tantrums from teenagers losing on the basketball court or the football field aren't pretty sights.  We've all seen them....The lessons learned at home serve you well....and can be taught in a myriad of ways.  Family time=learning time. Life is a CROQUET game and at some point, you're gonna have your ball knocked out of bounds.  It's all about dealing with life....win, lose or draw.....it's all about dealing.