Late yesterday, as we visited Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA, Aidan got to scrimmage with some members of that school's soccer team. As I was watching him play with guys a few years older than him, my mind wandered back to his first days learning soccer.
It was the fall of 1999. He was five. We were living in a big house on Maple Street in Takoma Park, MD.
I was his coach.
Here we are, a Baker's Dozen years and a continent later, and he's playing soccer with college-aged men on a college campus. It's not a game; it's a practice, but that's where it all starts -- at practice.
As the Evergreen coach watched beside me at the sideline, Aidan passed to a teammate and raced to the other side of the pitch, took a pass, and scored.
In this little friendly three-on-three, he did that multiple times, but on this particular play, the coach smiled at me and said, "Nice run."
It has been a nice run, being a soccer Dad these many years, privileged to watch this gifted young athlete and call him my son. Knowing how hard he has worked to get this far, it doesn't really matter whether he makes it as some sort of star in college or beyond -- to either of us.
It just matters that he loves the game, and will always be able to strap on some cleats, run out there on whatever field is at hand, and kick the ball around with others who love "the beautiful game."
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