10/15/2024
Antigonish is a sports town. I, like many parents of teenage children, often joke that I moonlight as a chauffeur, short-order cook, and laundress. With soccer, basketball, hockey, and volleyball on the go at my house these days, I’ve been thinking of the role of team sports in the lives of children – and how there are many parallels with the current political climate.
When Dr. Rebecca Wallace, Mila Mulroney Research Chair in Women & Politics at StFX, talks about encouraging women to become involved in politics, she also speaks of getting young girls involved in sports. Sports teach healthy competition and aggression; in a world in which women are taught to be demure, it’s important to create spaces where they can compete, mentally and physically. Regardless of gender, sports teach us to lose – and win – graciously. Most importantly, sports teach us to be team players.
Having kids in sports is time consuming, expensive, and requires enormous travel time: it’s a commitment. But we do it because we want our kids to be healthy, engaged, motivated, and, perhaps most importantly, to develop camaraderie and team spirit with teammates.
We all know that sports also bring hurt and cause heartache. We get injured: concussions, broken wrists and ankles, sprains, cuts and bruises are all common. But sports teach us to park our egos, to accept disappointment, and to work harder towards a future goal. All parents accept the hurt as part of the game; after all, nothing in life is without risk.
These last few weeks, I can relate.
As we enter the last week of the election, I am thinking a lot about teamwork and the goals of our town. Eleven of us are “trying out” for the role of councillor – some of us with more experience in the field than others. We’re putting our skills and ideas to the test in the hopes we’ll be chosen by the town to represent the interests of the people. Six councillors and one mayor will form a new team this Saturday. This group will need time to learn one another’s talents and skills and to learn how best to work together, strengthening and solidifying to address the concerns of the people and to solve the problems facing this town.
I’ve met so many people along this journey, who I’m now envisaging as part of our larger “team.” Like the extended network of coaches, managers, and other volunteers that make sports teams happen, the people of Antigonish are showing up this autumn in support of our town’s “team.”
They’re hammering in signs and writing letters and thoughtfully discussing the candidates over a visit with a cup of tea. They’re reassuring me, they’re leaving positive comments on social media posts, and they’re helping ferry my kids to endless games and practices.
Now, more than ever, I feel like I’m part of the Antigonish team – that we all are.
Two months ago, I showed up for tryouts. Today? I can’t wait to sit at the table and figure out how to work together to … well, not exactly win, but to succeed. With all of you. Together.
Go team!
