A couple of weeks ago, during English class, I overheard my friends Jarrod and Mark talking about soccer practice. I knew neither played soccer, so I turned around and asked what team they played for. They told me they weren't playing, they were volunteering to coach a ten-and-under town team. When I heard that, I instantly asked if I could help out. (Actually, I begged them to let me join.) Anyway, being good friends, they let me tag along.

During our first practice we realized that we had work ahead of us. Only three of our players knew how to kick. In addition, none of our coaches really knew how to coach. I was the only one with recent playing experience, so I did my part by running the drills, stressing the fundamentals, and showing them the proper footwork the best I knew how.

Over the next few weeks there seemed to be some improvement in each of our players. However, after our third consecutive loss, I began to question whether I was doing them any good as a coach. This question was answered almost immediately when a mother came up to me and thanked me for the time I was putting in with the children. She said that all the parents greatly appreciated what we were doing and that the kids really looked up to us. I realized that whether the Cobras win or lose did not matter. The fact that the kids and parents appreciate our help is more than gratifying.