A Quest for a Banner
A 2ft X 4ft banner. It was all about the banner.
Maybe not necessarily from the beginning. It all began by starting a competitive team to play Monday morning league during the months of April and May.
Blood, sweat and tears goes into playing the summer league. Not too much blood, but oh, so much sweat during every match. And so many tears at the very end. All because summer teams have the chance to advance, which means women might be a little more vicious when taking the courts.
When there is that little light at the end of the tunnel to go further, sacrifices must be made. What could possibly be a sacrifice when you are getting the joy of playing tennis?
Sacrifice is playing in 90-plus degree weather with the humidity at 80 percent or more.
Sacrifice is coming home after traveling 37 hours then driving an hour to a match so your team does not have to forfeit that line. Sacrifice is spending a full day at a set of courts an hour away waiting for the rain to stop.
Sacrifice is coughing so hard you feel you broke a rib but you keep playing because this match is that important. When you never give up and your partner never gives up covering the entire court for you. It’s the thrill when you come from behind and win in the third set tie breaker. Sacrifice is telling your partner “it’s OK” when it’s really not.
Sacrifice is playing that dreaded singles line because nobody else wants to and you are truly a doubles player.
Sacrifice is creating an illness to get out of work the very last minute, not getting paid for that time off and searching for a way to get a doctor’s note.
With those sacrifices come the true team player. Someone who plays with any other player on the team, regardless of what line it is or what time of day it is.
Someone who has a usual dress code of black shorts and a tank top but adheres to wearing a hot pink skirt and a blue tank top riddled with ribbons. Someone that will look like a cone of cotton candy to go along with the entire team so other teams will think they look “sweet.” Pity, the name of the team is Not So Sweet.
A team is a group of players that finish playing in 98 degree temperature, then all walk into the ocean still wearing their pink and blue uniforms. A team is one player letting another wrap around her shoulders because the ocean is just not her happy place, but she goes waist deep anyways.
A team cheers for you whether you are up or down. They applaud you and give you high fives after you lose the third set 10-point tie breaker 13-11. They cheer for you when you come off a court with a statement of “We failed to score.” They pick you up rather that put you down.
A team stands together in a small room holding their breath waiting for the final score to come in which will determine who was won the entire tournament. They cry when they hear the results. The result, a 2ft X 4ft banner that brings screams, tears, hugs. A banner that has been coveted for years. A banner that will hang on the fence of the tennis courts with the players signatures.
Would this team do it again?
You bet your not so sweet ass we will.