We won our first game yesterday with Xavier in net and then lost the second game. We should have won the second game as we had more opportunities. In Xavier’s game today we lost. We were heavily outshot and spent most of the last 2 periods in the box. By no stretch of the imagination would the loss today be pinned on the goaltending, but Xavier felt accountab for the loss and felt that he had let the team down. He made a bunch of clutch saves, but neither did he play to his best and play mistake free. The coaches said he played well, but it was not to the level and expectations that he himself has set for himself. The coaches noticed that he took the loss hard and it is what drives him to try and improve all of the time. In this game his saves were more impressive. But to him that is not a sign of good play. It reflects that he was out of position and he had to recover. We have always taught him that he is accountable for the shot. The team may be responsive for allowing the opportunity to score, but deal with what is in your control.
Hopefully this is what Xavier sees when we go through the treatment. What can I do everyday to put myself in the best opportunity for success. He calls me out when I do not eat enough and does not allow any excuses. I need to make sure that he understands the Asian tradition of eldest progeny is responsible for the well being of the elders on both sides of the family. Maternal and paternal. It is also one of the reasons why I had wanted to buy 100 acres of land so I can build a family compound. I expected at some point we would take care of our parents at since point. He can not stick me in a retirement home. He needs to take care of Mel and myself. My grandmother lives with us growing up even though my dad was the youngest. My parents are not rule followers. I learned from them. Xavier needs to follow this rule.
After the game when we were done eating and going back to the arena we chatted with him about resiliency. We told him that when things do not go your way you do not give up. You do not blame your coaches or the refs. I first heard the quote from the Rocky movie in a song and I think it resonates well. If you have not read it or heard it. What we have tried to teach him is stoicism. Deal with what is in your control. Whether it is fair or not it is irrelevant. We just finished the last game of the tournament in a blow out. The other goalie was pulled partially through the game and Xavier went in. It was a rough game all around. The team will need to be resilient this year. There is a significant difference in experience between the two on our team, but you need to allow the more inexperienced goalie to develop if you want growth.
The weekend is almost done now and we get back to the real world and hopefully the start of treatment. Next week the updates may be much shorter and less philosophical ramblings depending on my energy levels per day. I may try and get a ghost writer and use AI to write my posts that day. We can see what it hallucinates when I ask an AI to write about how I feel. I am sure that it will be quite obvious, but we will see.
Q