—
Heavy Decisions
I often face a huge challenge deciding what gifts to get for my son. As he has been growing up, I’ve noticed that he no longer gets excited about the presents I prepare for his birthdays or other special occasions.
The challenge is that when you get presents for a boy at his age, you don’t want to end up in the situation when you spend a lot of money and eventually the present leaves him disappointed. On the other hand, you don’t want to be predictable and appear as a bore in your son’s eyes.
My Stars Aligned
This year is special because my son turned thirteen and my stars just perfectly aligned. I have spent lots of time wondering what could be the best present with the greatest meaning for my son. Then something just happened: in a conversation, he told me that his favorite baseball coach had been leaving. Well, I was sorry and I told him so. But the next thing he said opened the best opportunity for me to give him the greatest present I could think of.
“The baseball tips you always give me have made me the best player on the team,” he confessed. This gave me an idea: maybe I should volunteer to coach his team. I told him what I had been thinking, and the excitement I saw on his face was the most heartwarming feeling I could ever wish for. I decided that this would be the best birthday present I could come up with.
My Apprehension
At first, I was confident that I could coach the team well and make my son proud. However, after a while, I grew apprehensive, asking myself if I was cool enough to know how to deal with a group of 13-year-olds. I had been watching my son and his friends for some time so I knew that teenagers prefer to communicate online these days. They would rather have a conversation on social media than getting face to face with each other.
So I started looking for an online website creator where I could create an engaging sports community. I found a platform that allowed me to create a customized online community and social network website where I could bring both students and parents together and keep them all updated.
I also realized that kids want to keep parents informed about their achievements. So, I created a special hub on the internet where I could post news, timetables, and children’s characters, while also allowing members of the team to communicate with each other.
The Challenges
Once I had all my planning in place, I arranged a meeting with the principal of my son’s school. He was delighted to know that I was willing to volunteer for coaching the team.
After meeting the team, I started noticing some difficulties. Players each had their own ideas about what needed to be done, and we spent a lot of time arguing. As I got to know the team better, things became much easier and we spent more time playing baseball than arguing. Also, my ability to connect with the team on our own social network made me just as cool as the teenagers wanted me to be. The fears of embarrassing my son were put to rest.
Improving My Relationship With My Son
I discovered that agreeing to take on the role of the team coach helped me get closer to my son than I had ever been before. Coaching his team and being with him for his weekend games, I saw another side of my boy that I had never seen before in my busy schedule. I saw a young man who is passionate about his game. This made me vow to myself that I will do anything in my power to help him get to the pinnacle of his chosen sport if that is what he wants.
Lessons for Parents
The teenagers I coach may be young but they have taught me a number of important lessons, like the importance of using digital technologies and online communities in communication with today’s youth. This makes everything easier, faster, and more efficient. At the same time, I realized how simple it is to build your own social network today and use it to your advantage, whatever your goals are. And above all, I managed to make sure that the restless teenager inside of me is still there.
—
This is a sponsored post. It contains a link to a product or service for sale.
—
Get the best stories from The Good Men Project delivered straight to your inbox, here.
◊♦◊
◊♦◊
Sign up for our Writing Prompts email to receive writing inspiration in your inbox twice per week.
♦◊♦
We have pioneered the largest worldwide conversation about what it means to be a good man in the 21st century. Your support of our work is inspiring and invaluable.
The Good Men Project is an Amazon.com affiliate. If you shop via THIS LINK, we will get a small commission and you will be supporting our Mission while still getting the quality products you would have purchased, anyway! Thank you for your continued support!
—
Photo credit: Getty Images