BEHIND THE MIKE

During the fall, I have the privilege of doing ball boy duties for my son Cory, who is a high school football coach in St. Cloud, Fla.

Freshmen, junior varsity and varsity teams get in three games a week. Most of the players either ignore me or they are afraid of me. After all, I’m not at practice every afternoon and I am not a coach. I am just a ball boy.

There are several groups that make up the scene at a high school football game. The players constitute 25-50 youngsters and occasionally there is a female among them.

The coaches make up another group of up to a dozen or so people who manage the game on the sidelines or on top of the press box. Some are running cameras in the end zone taking video of the game.

The cheerleaders constitute another sizable group of youngsters numbering in some cases a couple of dozen young ladies and occasionally a guy.

If just one parent of each child in these collective groups were present, you would have a pretty good crowd. Sadly, that is the poorest representative assemblage of the bunch.

As I gaze up at the stands, it hurts my heart to see so few parents there. These opportunities will never be available to you again after your kids go on the next stage of their lives.

There is another group that gets little attention. They are never publicly acknowledged by the press box. They are never thanked by players or parents. Only occasionally does a coach bother to express appreciation. They are the team managers.

This group keeps the players hydrated along the sidelines and during time outs. They are constantly fixing broken equipment or massaging cramped legs. They show up early and stay late attending to the needs of all the players.

Most are just youngsters who will never play a game but love being around sports. I always make it a point to say thank you to them because I know others will not remember to do so.

I have established a special rapport with the team managers. Many times they show up with facial art with the Bulldog team colors. They remind me of my granddaughters Ava and Ashley. They are always competing with one another. They will come to me and ask me to “grade” the facial art.

From my perspective, I always try to give them a pearl of wisdom each week. The first pearl I shared was after delivering a speech to a group of millennials earlier in the day. I had told them if they ever expected to retire comfortably, they should save 40%-45% of their gross income. No one is going to provide for their retirement but them.

During the second week, they pushed me hard to pick the best decorated face. My advice that week: “Find out what everybody else is doing… then don’t do it.” Message? Be different.

You cannot be around a group of kids without boyfriends and girlfriends becoming an ultimate topic of conversation. One asked me “Should I have a boyfriend?” My answer: “No you should have two… one to own and one to rent.”

The idea of love or commitment as a teenager makes no sense. Have some fun and get to know as many people as you can. The best love will awaken your soul and cause you to reach for more. It’ll plant a fire in your heart and give you hope forever. When you “settle” for a relationship, you will never be yourself.

My message to kids on love comes from Marilyn Monroe. She was once quoted: “If they can’t handle me at my worst, then they sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.” Demand the best for yourself.

Here is a pearl of wisdom… “Love is a lot like the wind… you cannot see it but you can and do feel it.”

Michael Aun, CSP®, CPAE Speaker Hall of Fame® is the author of “Behind the Mike” which is syndicated is over 1,500 newspapers in 41 countries.