My ten year old started playing soccer this year for the first time since she was 3 and a half so basically, for the first time as I find it difficult to call what she was playing at 3 and a half anything resembling the game of soccer.

She is noticing there are a few players on her team who are professional players or perhaps just played in the Olympics as amateurs.

There is an obvious gap in skill level between Hanna and some of the more dedicated players as you might expect when you are just starting out.

As such, Hanna spends some of her time ‘riding the pine.’ A term I grew to know and love when I too enjoyed getting to know all of the intricate patterns and ridges in the bench where I watched my team play volleyball in high school.

Ellie from the sidelines would say things to me like, “Mom, Hanna’s on the bench again!”

I would do my best to explain that the bench would give Hanna a great perspective of the various field positions and it also gives her coach a chance to explain things to her one on one during an actual game. These are all important things that will make Hanna a better player. I even had myself convinced this was a stepping stone to her blossoming soccer career.

I wondered though, was Hanna buying into this or was she embarrassed to be “benched” as some of us are/were.

When she got in the car, I waited for her to say, “Mom, I’m done with soccer! I spent half the game on the bench! I don’t know what I’m doing!”

As I turned on my phone to list her cleats on Kijiji she said something I wasn’t expecting.

“Mom, I LOVE my soccer team! They are so awesome!”

Exactly what I thought.