It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon in Seoul. The sun was surprisingly out, as I sat on the plastic chair watching my students play volleyball.  I had to stop myself from yelling at them and kept my mouth shut. I just sat their quietly, as I saw them miss balls and serves. I remembered how the coach from the other team sounded when I was reffing the other game.

As I watched, at times it was painful and other times enjoyable. Yet, I kept reminding myself to stay positive and encouraging. My competitive nature makes me want to win all the time and it comes out when I’m coaching.

Coaching middle school kids has helped me work on my patience.They make a lot of mistakes and are still working on mastering the basics. Yet, I’m proud to say that all of them have improved since the beginning of the season. So this entry I dedicate to all my middle school volleyball students!