The Country School is an independent, coeducational, Pre-K through 8 school founded in 1934.
News
Reflecting on Our First Intramural Basketball Season
Mrs. Schappeler shares some highlights and lessons from The Country School's first season of co-ed, intramural basketball.
Today, we celebrate the 38 athletes who represented our school in this first-ever Intramural basketball season at The Country School. 38 individuals were willing to try something new at our school, and because of their commitment, open mindedness, and dedication, the Intramural Program was launched with much success.
Our group of 5th through 8th grade students was diverse in every way… young men and women with a range of basketball experiences and skills. Some of our athletes play on traveling teams, while others were brand-new to playing on a team at all.. Some could sink a 3-pointer on Day 1 of practice; others were just hoping to get the ball close to the hoop.
In spite of the differences within our group, we saw two impressive themes emerge.
One is that they learned to be teammates. Our group was divided into North, South, East, and West.. four teams of mixed ages and abilities. We are proud to say that each of the 38 Cougars were team players. One of the most impressive things about these athletes is that they were willing to teach and learn from one another. This posture of learning and growth was evident at practices and games, when we witnessed players explaining the rules and tips of the game to their teammates, being patient when errors were made, and making selfless passes.
Everyone certainly didn’t come from the same place and didn’t end up at the same place either. Everyone had different skills and talents to contribute, but everyone added value. From the loudest cheer of encouragement to the biggest hustle up and down the court….the most teachable attitude to the most competitive spirit….the most unbelievable layup to the fiercest defense…. each person contributed to the good of the team.
Harry Truman once said, “It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” When you’re a part of a team, You’re part of something bigger than yourself. When someone is successful, it’s good for the whole team and everyone is in it together.
The other common lesson that emerged is: the understanding that practice doesn’t make perfect…It makes better.
In the age of “the filter,” almost all that we see in the media, social media, in magazines, and on TV has been radically edited to appear at its very best. Gone are the days of taking one picture and hoping for the best. We crop, filter, and re-pose until we get closer to what we had envisioned…until we get our idea of perfection.
Yet, in sports, as well as in life, the goal of perfection just isn’t realistic. Having the discipline to practice a skill isn’t about achieving true perfection. Playing sports teaches the idea that practicing and reinforcing skills will equate to progress in the direction of perfection, but not perfection itself.
Setting high goals is wonderful, but learning to celebrate the successes along the way to that goal is just as important. Similarly, in life, there are reasons to aim for perfection - a perfect spelling test, an undefeated season, Straight A’s - but just as important is the acknowledgment that getting better is sometimes worthy of celebration too. If we wait to celebrate until we’re truly perfect, we will be missing out on some of life’s greatest victories.
Understand that progress doesn’t always occur in a straight line. Remember this quote from Paulo Coelho. “An arrow can only be shot by pulling it backward. So if life ever drags you back with difficulties, it means that it’s going to launch you into something great. So just focus, and keep aiming.”
We encourage each of our 38 basketball players to keep focusing, to keep practicing, and to keep aiming for your best. We can’t wait to play more basketball with you next season!
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