I think as parents we all hope we can help our children find a passion. Whether that passion is in sports, in music, in art, or in academics is not important. What is important is finding that "thing" that your child will enjoy and pursue. And in so doing, they will feel a sense of pride in their committment and the accomplishments that they reap.
For many young Canadian children who pursue sports, that passion is ice hockey.
But what if your child is willing to buck that trend and pursue that summer sport that is no longer percieved as the complimentary sport to hockey. Most of us have heard it before: soccer helps your child's cardio which is important to their off-season hockey conditioning. Or the suggestion that lacrosse will keep your child sharp and help their hockey game while away from the rink.When did baseball unjustly adopt the perception as the sport of the unathletic. Perhaps it's because the MLB players we see on television, are doing things so effortlessly that we fail to see the endless hours that they practice and train to be able to do play the game at the hightest level.
In any case, if you have the courage to encourage your child to play the sport that requires hours of hard work both at and away from the diamond, then your child will be playing the single team sport where they will face individual success and failiure on a regular basis. And that experience will help your child build character and learn about themselves so that they are prepared to face the challenging experiences that lay ahead of them in life as adults. And while there is still some value in allowing your child to dream of playing for the Blue Jays or the Red Sox one day, we all realize that what we really are allowing them to do, is to learn how to work as a team, learn how to face challenging situations, and handle both success and defeat. Lessions that will serve them well later in life.