Anchor Down

Wes, twenty years ago anyway, had planned to go to Vanderbilt to study medicine. Thankfully AC made a better offer, but it is a little ironic that the Army has moved us so close to the city and campus that was included in his back-up plan. 

Basketball camp number two of the summer just happened and guess where the boys played? It takes very little to impress Keagan, so walking on to a college basketball court was enough to put him over the moon. Evan is a little harder to impress. However, I knew he was in his element when he was greeted on day one by one of the team's starters. 

On day two, Keagan reported they were treated like royalty when they were served chicken fingers, grilled cheese, cookies and fruit for lunch AND they were welcomed to eat seconds. I chose to attend the last thirty minutes of training and those few minutes probably included some great basketball, but I was so caught up in the smell of sweaty boys that I couldn't do much else but think about the smell that encompassed the gym. I quickly texted Wes my dilemma (wanted to watch but the smell was killing me) and he retorted, "Tomorrow bring a mint leave from that new plant we put in the ground yesterday and stick that up your nose. You can watch all the basketball you want with the fresh smell of mint."

On day three, both boys were happy to announce that they were playing for teams in first place.

On day four, they were excited to announce they got to watch the USA soccer game at lunch, and then they participated in the welcome home celebration for the baseball team. Keagan was thrilled to shake hands with the players, and even though Evan was tight lipped about the experience, I think he was excited to be apart of it as well.

Perhaps you have noticed that none of the reports include anything related to learning basketball drills or skills. However, neither boy argued when I woke them at 6:15 for a week during their summer vacation, and neither boy complained about the hour long drive to and from during rush hour traffic.

To say they enjoyed themselves is an understatement. At one session, I saw Evan doing reverse layups and Keagan driving into the paint to score baskets. They did learn something, after all. We will be back next year for sure, but before that, we will be cheering for the 'Dores at the home games this winter.