The Goalkeeper’s Mum

It’s safe to say, our family has been watching A LOT of soccer recently.

Suddenly, our usually sleepy household has been crawling out of bed at the earliest hours of the cold morning. I’ve learned the stories of some of our Socceroo players and my knowledge of South American countries has never been stronger. And (dare I say it?) I’ve even started to understand the offside rule.

One of the thoughts I keep coming back to as I watch is “how are the mums of the goalkeepers doing?”

These stadiums are packed with fans. It must feel like the entire world is watching. At the absolute pinnacle of the game, half of the stadium is desperate for you to succeed. And the other half? They’re hoping you fail.

I’m writing this on Tuesday morning, keeping one eye on the Germany Paraguay game, which has gone into extra time. By the time you read this, the result will be long known, processed, celebrated or mourned. Right now, there are two goalkeepers carrying the hopes of their teams. But somewhere, perhaps watching from the stands or from the other side of the world, are two mums whose hearts are beating just as fast.

“As parents, it’s such a challenge to remain hopeful, resilient, encouraging and realistic when sport offers such enticing highs along with such difficult lows.”

I’m the Mum of a soccer goalkeeper (not quite at World Cup level though!) I’m also the Mum of kids who compete in Canoe Slalom – a sport that I knew absolutely nothing about other than Jess Fox and green and red stripy poles in the water. I’ve spent plenty of hours watching my kids compete in sport where the margin between success, happiness, and celebration is just millimetres away from disappointment and frustration. As parents, it’s such a challenge to remain hopeful, resilient, encouraging and realistic when sport offers such enticing highs along with such difficult lows.

Sport can mirror our lives; every day has different challenges. Mid-year exams. Friendship tensions. Conflict with someone when you just can’t seem to resolve the problem. Sometimes it might feel like the crowd is cheering you on, but other times you might feel like they’re just waiting for you to fail.

For us as a community, we want to surround our young people with care and support, especially on their tough days. As parents, carers and teachers, we also want to grow the understanding that our worth and value are never determined by our latest successes or failure. Isaiah 43 reminds us: You are precious and honoured in my sight…and I love you. At the heart of the gospel of grace is relationship with God who offers unconditional love, whether we’re having the very best or the very worst of days.

Every goalkeeper knows that they’ll make some brilliant saves and they’ll make mistakes. This is true for all of us. Our hope is that every young person at school knows that they have people in their corner no matter what, that they have value far beyond their accomplishments or successes, and that they are loved by a God who will never leave them.

Stelle Carmichael – Head of Students