As a child I was not
involved in any organized sports. No
soccer leagues, no softball for girls, mostly just playtime and as an older
child “hanging out.”
We did play sports in
school. I remember kick ball--just like
baseball only you kick a soccer-sized rubber ball--then run around the bases. I
loved that game. Also dodge ball was big
in elementary grades.
When I was about ten my
father took me out on skis a few times. Not to a ski area, rather cross
country. Being in the lumber business he
knew where the old abandoned roads were and I was proud of myself indeed to be
out on skis with my Daddy. For a few
years the family would venture up to Old Forge in the Adirondack Mountains,
stay in a hotel and ski at the ski area. In those days in NY State a rope tow
was the best means of propulsion to the top of the ridge.
I loved skiing, except
for getting cold. Today 70 years later I
am still skiing and have no intention of giving it up any time soon.
Also in the winter we had
many opportunities for ice skating. We would skate on the nearby lake, in fact,
I could skate to school at the other end of the lake. In New Jersey our lake froze over quite often
as I remember.
On a couple of occasions as a child my Daddy
took me to the local horse stables where we could rent a couple of horses and
off we would go. Just walking an old nag, I’m sure.
But again, I was on top of the world because I was with my Daddy. That
was probably the best sports experience of those early days and we probably
only went out on horses a couple of times. I was devastated when I had to quit
that because I was allergic to horses.
My mother was not
athletic and did not like sports except bowling which she participated in
weekly for many years. I do believe it
was more of a social activity for her than a competition. However, she always
went along on the ski trips and was a good sport about it.
Around age 15 my Daddy
taught me to play golf. He was a avid
golfer and quite skilled at the game. In the ensuing year I came to take it
quite seriously, playing for fun and in occasional competitive events in high
school and college.
As I am writing this, I
keep thinking of more and more sports which were introduced to me by my father.
He really had been quite an athlete himself in college. I know that because at
home in the attic I happened upon some of the medals and certificates awarded
to him.
I am also reminded of
sporting events my father took me to watch. What I remember best are the hot
dogs at Ebbets Field or maybe it was Yankee Stadium. The game I thought boring to watch, but I
enjoyed the yummy hot dogs slathered in mayo, mustard, and pickles.
Also memorable was the
time we went to see Babe Didrikson Zaharias* play golf in an LPGA [Ladies Professional Golf Association] tournament in
New Orleans. Babe was the greatest woman athlete of her day. Having competed in the Olympic games in
track, she was now a golf champion. I must have been around 16 or 17 at the
time of that event since we lived near New Orleans. I will never forget
approaching her when she was practicing on the putting green before a
match. She signed my program for me and
my heart went thumpity-thump.
Another sport my father
taught me was ping pong. We had an enclosed sun porch at the back of our house
in New Jersey which housed our ping pong table. Daddy would challenge me to a
game and start out by announcing that he would even the playing field, so to
speak, by tying his right arm behind him, or spotting me a number of points. As
I grew older and more adept, the number of points he spotted me diminished
until finally we were even. He could not have been happier, which was a message
to me about what is really important in sports.
When I was in high school we were forced to
move from New Jersey, a rather progressive place, to Louisiana, the ultimate in
conservatism and tradition. We, of course, had to give up the winter sports.
After the move in school my sports
participation came to a rather screeching halt. Girls did not do sports in my
Louisiana high school. It might cause a
girl to sweat, which is not lady-like.The best I could do was to be a cheer
leader and cheer on the boys.
It was then that my
father taught me to play golf. It was my saving grace when it comes to sports
participation during those three years in Louisiana.
My choice to leave the
deep south and go back north to college was probably driven somewhat by my love
of sports and particularly winter sports.
When I married and became
the mother of three children, I gave up golf and took up tennis. I found that I could from time to time manage
an hour of tennis, but never could I find a half a day for a round of golf.
Also money was tight. Public tennis courts are free, not so with the golf
course, even public ones. Also during my
years of mothering I coached my girls’ recreational
soccer league teams. When that was over
and I was age 40 something I started playing the game until I turned 60.
I continued playing
tennis for the rest of my life, my Patty Berg signature golf clubs gathering
dust in the attic. I have been tempted but have not found time to get back into
golf. I’m spending too much time and having too
much fun on the tennis court.
The sports introduced to
me by my father have been very important to me throughout my life and continue
to be so. They have opened up doors, brought me closer to friends and family
simply by being able to play together. Teaching and participating in sports
with each of my three children I know has brought us closer together over the
years.
Some of my best
friendships have grown out of my interest and participation in sports. I play regularly with good friends at the
Denver Tennis Club, tennis and ping pong. I’m happy to say that my lovely Gillian has
joined me in ping pong. She is a
formidable player and we have our own table at home.
I still play ping pong,
ski cross-country and downhill. I have taught skiing to the disabled for 16
years at the National Sports Center for Disabled, which has been an educational
experience, and enlightening.
Did I mention cycling?
Like most kids I had a bicycle back in New Jersey as a youngster. I rode it to school and rode around the area
with my friends. We pedaled our bikes to
the movies on Saturdays and to the drug store for sodas.
I took up serious cycling
when I retired in 1998. My ambition upon
retirement had been to hike the Colorado Trail.
I had worked as a volunteer building the trail now I wanted to hike the
entire length. When the time came, I had to give up the idea because of a
chronic back condition. So instead I took up cycling and have had some of the
best adventures of my life as a result--the ultimate being the trip from the
Pacific to the Atlantic which I pedaled in 2005.
I am fortunate that I
have an aptitude and a proclivity for sports--most sports, and have had the
opportunity to learn to play, to practice, and the health to participate in
them which is truly the love of my life--well, one of them anyway.
© 13 Nov 2014
About
the Author
Betsy has been active in
the GLBT community including PFLAG, the Denver Women’s Chorus, OLOC (Old
Lesbians Organizing for Change), and the GLBT Community Center. She has been
retired from the human services field for 20 years. Since her retirement, her major
activities have included tennis, camping, traveling, teaching skiing as a
volunteer instructor with the National Sports Center for the Disabled, reading,
writing, and learning. Betsy came out as a lesbian after 25 years of marriage.
She has a close relationship with her three children and four grandchildren.
Betsy says her greatest and most meaningful enjoyment comes from sharing her
life with her partner of 30 years, Gillian Edwards.
