Life Lessons from Softball Socks
Our high school held a home game, and the dress code was white
pants and black socks. My daughter has
been diligent to make sure she has the right stuff for games, despite being a
JV player on the bench during Varsity games. (It’s okay – she missed a few years, and her skill set isn’t there…yet.)
On one particular Friday home game, one of the Varsity
players didn’t have the black socks everyone was wearing, and my daughter’s
kind heart borrowed her, her only pair of black socks for that game, despite
her looking the odd one out in white socks, she did it our of kindness for a
team mate.
At the end of the game, my daughter simply asked for her
socks back, as they were her only black pair.
The gal said she needed them to go home in because she didn’t have
others and would get them back to her the next week at practice. That day came and the socks weren’t
returned. By the next day, 3 days later,
my daughter once again asked and again – no socks returned. She messaged me, frustrated and I said, “heh,
I know the mom, I’ll simply ask her to remind her daughter to return them” no
big deal. Well, the mom wasn't impressed with my request, didn’t know her
daughter had loaned my daughter's socks in the first place and messaged her
daughter angrily about it. The daughter
then turned and lashed at my daughter in anger for getting her in trouble. And my mama bear heart sank.
9 days went by. No
returned socks. I ordered a new pair for
the next home game, Amazon Prime for the win during a busy time so I did not
have to run to stores looking for softball socks. I told my daughter, let it go and just see if
she returns them by the next home game. 11 days later, home game day arrived, no socks and in the meantime this gal got others
to “take her side” and hassle my daughter….”it’s just socks….” Yes, exactly, it’s just socks that show your
moral character and how a simple “here are your socks back, thank you so much
for helping me out” isn’t capable of coming from her mouth.
I told my daughter let it go, do not say anything
anymore. The life lesson you receive
from the softball socks drama is that some people, no matter how kind you are
to them will be narcissistic in nature back to you. The old “stab you in the back” has a literal
feel to this story. I’m sad that this
child who received the borrowed socks couldn’t rise to return them to their
rightful owner right away or at all. Knowingly keeping them
and being continually angry with my daughter who did nothing wrong but be kind. My daughter said she would never help her
again, and I find a sadness in this life lesson she is taking away from simple
softball socks.
I also find sadness for this girl that probably was chewed
out by her Mom, that she has to kick the dog (my daughter) so to speak. Her life will not be easy if this is how she
deals with things in her life, for that I’m sad. Sad that she simply couldn’t
return what was borrowed to her with a simply “thank you.” That was all my
daughter needed, not the drama that pursued.
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