OK, so, I love this. It’s one young hockey kid helping another (just under three minutes). I love the tenderness in this. I love the stick-to-it-ness.
I played hockey growing up. From the age of six, skating (if you could call it that) mostly on my wobbly ankles. I played often at the community outdoor rink. Got better. Wore our favorite player’s jerseys. That’s what we did back then. I was one of those kids that walked to the rink with skates hanging over my hockey stick behind my shoulders. I played in community leagues for 15 years.
I played even more, as a kid, for hours and hours and hours in the basement. It was awesome that my mom ran a dance studio — open, polished floor. No skates. Sometimes equipment. Mostly hockey sticks and tennis balls taking turns taking shots with my friends and, oops, breaking a few windows and dance mirrors along the way. Mom was patient.
Hockey is such a great game. It’s grown into something that is a bit harder to recognize. It’s promoted as violent (“went to the fights and a hockey game broke out”). It’s a rough game, but it’s also a beautiful game. It’s fluid, always in motion. Requires laser focus and good peripheral awareness.
So much to say. For today, however, it’s just about kindness. Thanks David Gouthro for sharing this.