to my team: dare greatly.

dear girls,

every year it gets harder and harder for me to encapsulate my thoughts at the end of the season. i cannot believe that four seasons have already come and gone. i know that is quite possibly the most cliché phrase i could write at this moment, but it doesn't stop being true.

and this year is especially hard because i really thought this was the year. this year had state champs written all over it. i'm still in shock that it's really over. and i still don't quite believe that i won't ever see any of you seniors in a cox mill jersey ever again. it already feels like there's something missing.

i know we didn't end up where we wanted to this season. i know.
it breaks my heart too.
i know it sucks in a different way, but it still sucks. and in this moment, it's just going to suck.

but we won't stay there. be there for now. grieve it.
grieve what we wanted. grieve what could have been. and then be grateful for all that was.

no, we didn't get that game we so desperately wanted. we didn't. but don't discount what we had. because being a part of a team is more than wins and losses. it's more than statistics.

you are more than that.

this team, and you as individuals, you are all more than that.
your character and your essence are more, and you showed that tonight.

i hope when you look back at this season you will not simply remember the way that it ended, but that you will remember all the moments that made you a team. the stories, the bus trips, the team dinners. i hope you will remember the friendships that were forged on and off the field.

i hope that this season made you remember why you started playing soccer in the first place. i hope thinking back on this season makes you remember why you love the game.

i hope you take this and learn from it. grow from it. let it teach you what it means to fall down and get back up again.

you were brave tonight. you went into a tough game, and you played with all you had.
and you need to be brave in this life. you need to be able to face up against mountains that you may fail to overcome, and try to climb them anyway.

life is hard sometimes, and you already know that it is not fair. but that doesn't mean that it is not amazing.

{via pinterest from here}

wherever this life takes you - keep showing up. learn from whatever life hands you. learn from it. grow from it. but keep showing up.
there will be days when you want to quit.
keep going anyway.

{via pinterest from photobucket}

you were in the arena tonight ladies. you may have failed to win this game this night, but you dared greatly. stepping on that field means there is always a chance of winning and a chance of losing, but at the end of the day that's not really what the game is about. the game is about taking the chance. the game is about working hard and getting better every time you step on the field. the game is about daring greatly.


as for you seniors: bring excellence with you wherever you go. you came into this program, and you made it better. you worked your tails off for four years, and you helped take us to that place where we're knocking on the door of a state championship. you raised the bar. you expected more. you were the example of what more meant. this program is better because you were here.

do that everywhere you go. leave it better than you found it. raise the bar. be the example. work hard always. push yourselves to be better. control what you can control, and don't worry about the rest.

i am so grateful to have walked with you for a portion of the last four years. i am grateful to have had the opportunity to know each one of you. and please know that i'm here for you always.


and for all of you girls: i have loved coaching you. you remind me why i started. you remind me why i love this game. i am grateful to each and every one of you.

much love,

coach kate