|
Lately, it seems as though there’s been an in pouring of
requests for an article which addresses the issue of ringside
parents. For all of those who have made that suggestion, this is
it.
Every activity has them.
Whether it’s baseball, football, soccer, swimming, ballet,
spelling bee’s, or dog shows, the children who are involved in
these extra-curricular activities have eager parents, standing
on the sidelines, watching everything.
Especially as a kid, it’s really nice to have support. Sometimes
the world seems against you, and it always feels good to have
someone rooting for you through it all. But sometimes all the
rooting and cheering gets to be too much, and sometimes it’s
downright embarrassing.
Sometimes parents get carried away. Naturally, they want the
best for their children, and they want their children to
succeed. The line between being there as moral support, and
becoming their child’s personal offense team sometimes gets a
little blurry, and sometimes they do more harm than good.
One example of bad
spectator behavior is called The Cheerleader, who is guilty of
excessive enthusiasm outside the ring. So many times I’ve heard
a single parent or family making all kinds of noise while their
poor embarrassed child is doing their individual patterns. Dog
shows are more like golf and less like football games when it
comes to cheering by spectators during “game play”. Light
clapping is acceptable, but until such time when the
winners are announced, keep the commotion to a minimum.
Another inappropriate behavior example is The Personal
Bodyguard. To these parents, there child can do nothing wrong,
nor can they experience a loss without someone else being at
fault. These parents sit outside the ring, berating others, and
pointing out how wonderful their little darling is. Your child
may very well be good, but pointing out the flaws of others is
more an example of how to be a bully, and not how to be a good
sport. Worse yet, is if the child is brainwashed into thinking
that they are perfect, then they no longer have a drive to
improve. In extreme examples of these individuals, sometimes
they even go so far as to audibly blame the other juniors or the
judge if their child does not win. And most of the time, these
juniors sulk away in embarrassment. |
|
And then there is The Coach. This individual sometimes yells
at the junior while they are in the ring, shouting
suggestions that seem more like orders, though they often
don’t appear to have much of a clue of what they are talking
about. “Smile like you mean it!”, and “Stand up straighter!”
won’t make the difference in whether they win or lose, I
promise. This is a dog show, not the Miss America pageant.
Of course, these are extreme examples, and most parents
will have been guilty of one of these at some point. Many of
the offenders are the parents of young juniors or are new to
the sport and are not yet privy to proper spectator
etiquette.
I can
personally admit to being guilty of some “soccer mom” habits
by the junior’s ring, as I often go there to watch others.
Mumbling “do’s and don’ts” to myself, I’m a terribly anxious
spectator, which is why I like to handle and be in the ring.
For any others who may also have this problem, I suggest
simply walking away as I have had to do on many an occasion.
If I find that I can’t be content to just watch the ring
without the possibility of annoying those beside me, then I
try to quit while I’m ahead, after all, me watching won’t
change the outcome.
And
as in any children’s sport or activity, it is supposed to be
about the kids. They are doing this (or should be doing
this) because it’s something they want to do. If they
want to do it, then they will improve. And though it’s
sometimes hard to watch, sometimes the best lessons are
learned “the hard way”. I can certainly say that I learned
more from losing than from winning.
Everyone deserves to lose sometimes, and sometimes they
don’t, but it’s all part of the game. If losing is really
that devastating to you or your child, then this is the
wrong sport to be involved in. The best way to support your
child at a show is to wish them the best of luck, watch them
show their hearts out, then congratulate them for wins, or
give them a “better luck next time” consolation. - Brigette |
