We will miss you!

Tonight we had our end of the season party for Volleyball. It was bittersweet...we had a great season and our girls learned so much, but they could have played much further into the tournament. Anyways...moving on...we had plenty of food and drinks and had a few activities planned for them. We started our party with everyone sitting in a circle and telling the team one positive thing that has happened from the beginning of the season until now.  The first girl said that even though she has never played volleyball before,(and she is a great player by the way), that she will probably play in high school and that I helped her believe in herself...Oh no, don't tear up, keep it together, is what I'm telling myself as she is speaking. Another one of my girls, who is usually quiet, told us that she really felt like she had a place where she belonged and she has never felt that before...Cue the waterworks...it wasn't that long ago that I was these girls age and sometimes felt the same way they are feeling now. I am so happy that we created a family environment where everyone felt accepted outside of the hormone driven drama they are sorrounded by at school. As if that wasn't touching enough, another girl told us that she really appreciated us encouraging her and telling her she could do anything because she constantly puts herself down in her mind and it made her feel good about herself...I almost started balling. I never thought that this girl with her tough exterior, would open up to us like this. Not only had these girls grown as volleyball players, but they had grown as young women as well.  Since the girls had such amazing things to say, we decided to do another activity where everyone wrote a message to everyone else without signing their names. When we were all finished writing, everyone went and read their messages privately. These girls definitely needed a self esteem boost and this gave it to them. After everyone read their messages, we handed out certificates that we made for each of the girls. Everyone had a positive award such as Most Dedicated, Best Hitter, Best Setter, etc., and everyone had a silly award such as Most Distracted, Most Hair, Best Split, etc. They loved their awards, especially the funny ones. When we thought we were finished and were going to go home for the night, the girls surprised the coaches with gifts. They gave us cards and notes signed from everyone, teddy bears, chocolates, and bath and body works! I was definitely holding back the tears at this point. I had to wait until I got home to read my cards. One message still sticks out in my mind, "Coach- Thanks for being a good friend and an amazing coach. I'm going to miss you a lot and remember all of the laughs that we had.I hope you come back for graduation! Thanks for everything you are the bestest! Love you!" ...I will miss these girls so much...