Behind the Whistle
23
JULY, 2019
Well, I had plans to write about an awesome Conference I attended over the weekend in San Antonio, TX. It’s called the Behind the Whistle Symposium put on by the future Drs. Will and Lizette Goodloe. But Instead I’ve been busy trying to get ready to take a family vacation.
This is the first family vacation we have had in a while and we decided to take the dog, Spiderman or Spidey as we call him. He’s a crazy German Shorthaired Pointer (picture below) and a constant source of chaos. As I’m dictating this into my phone so I can turn it into a blog post, we’re in the car and getting ready to hit the road and he’s chasing a fly. Yes – I’m too often one of those people with unreal amounts of dog slobber on the inside of my windows (thanks a lot flies!!) To say it’s a little hectic is an understatement, but the vacation is MUCH needed.
My daughters are getting to that age where they’re close to going off to college (shhh – don’t tell Starla, I think denial is working well so far 😉) so family time is scarce but cherished. Funny how that happens, right? How when we can feel the deadline of college we become more cognizant of these family moments. But when we were “in the weeds” with two toddlers and just trying to make it day to day it was difficult to take a step back and mentally cherish those moments. I do now for sure, I look back at those moments with fondness, but in the moment it felt like I had forever until my girls got to this age.
Behind the Whistle is a symposium designed to provide educators with the tools necessary for developing the whole athlete and themselves beyond schematics and the sidelines. It aims to address issues in social justice, mental health and wellness, social work in sports, coaching athletes in Generation Z, positive coaching, and culturally relevant coaching.
Just as it felt raising a family all those years ago, it’s easy as coaches to be so caught up in the Xs and Os (or sets and reps as it was for me) that we forget, or are unable, to take a step back and see the bigger picture. Behind the Whistle is one of the best opportunities I’ve had to take that step back and appreciate how sport intertwines with society, how it’s current events/issues show up in sport, and how I can use my position coaching young men and women to help navigate those issues.
If you get an opportunity to attend the symposium I highly recommend it and when I find out next year’s date I’ll let you know. Either Spidey caught the fly or one of the girls let it out a window because everything has settled down a little. We’re well on our way and I’m looking forward to seeing Niagara Falls! Remember, enthusiastically embrace each chance you get to take a step back and see the big picture.