I Tried Out for the Basketball Team
And that was a big mistake
Merion Mercy Academy
10th Grade
1970-71 Season
Helen made me do it. She just moved in next door and was going to start the new school year with me. During the summer, she made me practice shooting baskets in to the loop in her back yard. We played Around The World. We took shots from marked, designated spots on the driver way. By the end of the summer, I was making many of my shots.
So when December rolled around, Helen signed the two of us up for try-outs. I went reluctantly and I think a few classmates laughed when they saw me come out of the locker room. They all knew I was a gym flunky.
Practice started and I was outplayed and wasted people's time. And I was exhausted, out of shape and humiliated. I became invisible on the court and no one even thought of passing the ball to me.
I finished practice and left in a quandary. I didn't want to continue and no one really wanted to see me on the court because I was a burden to the process. But we had a "no quit" culture at our school. If I quit, i was an even bigger loser. Since it was Friday and we didn't have practice again until Tuesday, i had time to come up with a plan.
And as luck would have it, I found a solution: coincidentally I ruptured my ear drum. That left me with pain and dizziness but it was worth it.
My mother asked my doctor is I should give up basketball and he thought I would be fine once the vertigo went away.
So on Tuesday, I arrived at practice at 4 with a fake sincerity and lots of glee. I told the coach that I had ruptured my eardrum over the weekend and the doctor told me I couldn't play but I didn't want to quit the team. I told her that I realized I probably wasn't going to make the team. But quitting wasn't an option. I would sit on the bench until cuts were made. She was so moved by my sense of commitment that she cut me that day. I was free to go. I was so damn happy.
As for Helen, she got cut at the end of the week as well.
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