<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When I was seven years old, I played roller hockey.\u00a0 I was the only girl on a team full of boys from my town. I loved the sport.\u00a0 This kid, who I\u2019ll call Thomas, was a natural player.\u00a0 Everything came easy for him.\u00a0 He could skate, stick handle, and had good vision on the ice.\u00a0 We were ages 7 and 8.\u00a0 At that age, I was the same size, if not bigger than most of my teammates. I was naturally talented as well.\u00a0 I could skate, stick handle and had great vision on the ice.\u00a0 I was quiet and shy.\u00a0 While the boys weren\u2019t mean, I knew I wasn\u2019t really welcome.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t sure how to deal with having a girl in the boy\u2019s club, especially at that age.\u00a0 Every movie on ABC Family or Disney or Nickelodeon had the same theme: No girls allowed!\u00a0 Or vice versa.\u00a0 So, real life was awkward.\u00a0 But I kept my head down, smiled, and blended into the shadows in between drills at practice.\u00a0 I just wanted the team to feel like they could be themselves even with a girl on the team.\u00a0 They really were very nice.\u00a0 I just put this extra pressure on myself due to some sensitive intuition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One day we were at an elementary school practicing without skates on.\u00a0 I don\u2019t really remember the practice.\u00a0 What I remember was the cool down.\u00a0 We were all following our coach as he walked us through stretches.\u00a0 Thomas was happy.\u00a0 He\u2019d had a good practice where the team seemed to support his leadership and skill set.\u00a0 I was happy because the attention was on him, and it was as if I was not even there.\u00a0 Perfect.\u00a0 He was even gloating because the coach just commented on his flexibility.\u00a0 He\u2019s good at everything.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then, we get to a stretch I can do with ease.\u00a0 Literally didn\u2019t even need to exert any effort.\u00a0 Unfortunately, Thomas did.\u00a0 He\u2019s all smiles until he sees me, casually sitting there while he struggles to touch his foot with his hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHey!\u201d Thomas shouts.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s not fair! She doesn\u2019t even have to try!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a moment, I start gloating at my natural talent in an attempt to thwart my anxiety as the team turned their eyes on me.\u00a0 I thought, \u201cThomas is too kind a soul to be serious.\u00a0 Everything comes easy to him.\u00a0 Surely, this is a joke.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n No. Incorrect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCoach, she should have to do it with two hands.\u00a0 That\u2019s not fair!\u00a0 Look!\u00a0 She\u2019s not even stretching.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n My smiles fades as I realize Thomas is serious.\u00a0 I bend down lower into the stretch with a shocked but amused smirk hoping we can move on from this stretch soon.\u00a0 Thomas looks very frustrated.\u00a0 Is he tired or something? Low on blood sugar, perhaps?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then coach walks behind me.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBritt, you have to do it with two hands.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n My heart sinks.\u00a0 He cannot be serious.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n I obey as my cheeks redden.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n I can\u2019t touch my toes with my other hand.\u00a0 Thomas smiles again.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSee?\u00a0 Now we\u2019re even.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that was my first lesson in the male ego.\u00a0 When it\u2019s challenged, they bitch until they even the playing field.\u00a0 I, on the other hand, was faced with adversity and caved without a thought of defending myself.\u00a0 It\u2019s easier than fighting a room full of men.\u00a0 And it\u2019s a team sport.\u00a0 The team needs their leader feeling confident.\u00a0 Right?\u00a0 Yes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n One notch on the self-sabotage belt for me.\u00a0 Age 7.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Love Yourself<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n \u2013 Britt<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Childhood Stories from a Female Athlete When I was seven years old, I played roller hockey.\u00a0 I was the only girl on a team full of boys from my town. I loved the sport.\u00a0 This kid, who I\u2019ll call Thomas, was a natural player.\u00a0 Everything came easy for him.\u00a0 He could skate, stick handle, and had good vision on the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[11,9,8,10],"class_list":["post-35","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-childhood-stories-from-a-female-athlete","tag-childhood-stories-from-a-female-athlete","tag-female-athletes","tag-hockey","tag-male-ego"],"yoast_head":"\n
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