I am not the most competitive person on the planet. In fact, sometimes I frustrate Hubby because I am content to participate, but not necessarily yearn to win, be it a board game, or playing outside, or even playing cards. Heck, you can forget about dominoes!! His grandfather was a champion, and wrote a book on the game!!
Sometimes, though, I do like to win.
I remember back in 7th grade, our PE teacher, AKA Attila, decided we girls were not to play manly sports. As you can possibly imagine, that pronouncement did not go over well with the female contingent. But no one listened to the students back then. Anyway, Coach Attila gets it into his head that we little helpless females will learn archery. He honestly thought it was a girls activity.
We start to practice, and some of us discover we have an aptitude for it. Breathe in, find your center, pool the quiet, and let go. There’s something about the twang of the bow as you let go a sharp projectile aimed at an imaginary picture of your coach. Some of us were so proficient, that the guys who were off playing flag football asked if they could try it.
All of them got trounced, including Coach Attila. That was an awesome day.
Fast forward to 2004. While on a visit to Poland, we stayed at Zamek Kliczkow. One of the oldest castles in Poland, it had been converted into a hotel. And on the weekends, they had archery demonstrations.
The Archer was situated in what was once the moat, and invited all to come down and try their hand at bows and arrows. We all went down, since the kids were agog at the medieval trappings on display. First up was Hubby, and he did pretty well. And then it was my turn….
That is my archery trophy, presented on my birthday, courtesy of Eldest when she was only 9 years old. The only trophy I will keep forever.
Sometimes winning is the only thing 😉
