It is only fitting that we concluded our non-traditional spring season wrapped in our warmest winter clothes, sliding on a wet and muddy field in less than ideal soccer-playing conditions. You would think that we mistakenly started the season too early and tried to play a game in February, but really, it was May 3rd and another miserable weather day for spring 2008. The cold lingered longer this spring, and the rain pounded harder than anyone expected, but maybe we just all forgot that we are in Wisconsin after all.
We started the spring season with a commitment to the theme of control. Time on the ball in tight quarters of racquetball courts and limited space in the multi-purpose room forced the issue. We had to keep the ball from jetting out onto the track so it would not take out an unsuspecting sprinter. We had to soften our first touches so we could make the ball stay close enough to manipulate the way we wanted. We took control of what we could, but our bigger challenge was with letting go of expectations that we can control everything.
This spring was more an exercise in letting go of a need to control because we had no choice. We couldn't control the lingering winter and the stubborn spring weather. We couldn't control the soggy and dangerous field conditions. We couldn't control the prioritization of in-season training or our ability to work ourselves into available spaces. We couldn't control academic schedules and conflicts with ever-changing practice schedules.
Yet, the season came and went and we gained a handle on what it means to control. Control means recognizing the places you can effect change. Sometimes control simply means keeping your emotions in check when you recognize that there is truly more you cannot control than those things that you absolutely can.
