Tag: Sundays

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Be The Best.

Langley wins Provincial Championship…and other stuff you should know.

When it comes to lacrosse, both field and box, Langley has always been close to the top and rarely at the top.

The boys, really young men now, that you see in the picture below have been battling for a gold medal for 10 years or more.

I watched a young Chris write down his goal, ‘Make the A1 Langley lacrosse team’.

Then I watched him work that goal.  Push-ups, eating right, practice, repeat.  Working and never quitting.

He made it.  The next goal was to win.  I watched him and his squad battle their hearts out to several bronze medals at the Provincials.  They were huge accomplishments, but the ride home was usually quiet.

He wanted the Gold.

When he won the bronze with Team BC at the National Box Tournie, it was again an amazing accomplishment but the gold still remained the goal.

A couple of Sundays ago on the fields at Burnaby Lake, Langley’s Tier 1 (A1) field lacrosse team won the Gold medal for the FIRST TIME IN LANGLEY’S HISTORY.

These were all guys that Chris had played with over the years and judging by the comments on Chris’ still very active memorial Facebook wall, he was with them on the field for the big win.

CONGRATS to all the players and coaches…and parents too!!  As I look at the picture below I see James, Michael, Brett, Eric, Ryan, Rhys, Riley, Will, Alex and more.

You all have battled for many years together and I know that Chris LOVED fighting the fight with you and I know he’ll be your wingman as many of you leave minor lacrosse and move forward with the next exciting stages of life.

This was a MEGA accomplishment and I know Chris will be beaming for a long time about this one.

You can read the full story in the Langley Times here. 

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Be The Best.

Be The Best. Newspaper style.

We got home from work a little earlier than usual the other day.

It was just in time to see our young community newspaper carrier hoofing it up the rather steep grade of our road, getting those papers to the front doors along the street.  I liked his approach.  Not walking across lawns, bringing the paper all the way to the front doors, etc.

Ingrid suggested I should give him a Christmas tip.  Great idea.

As he came up the driveway I asked him how long he had been doing the route.  Since November he said. Great timing, I replied,….just before Christmas!  I asked how many times he delivered the paper.  Tuesdays, Fridays but in the Christmas break, Sundays too as he would be covering for someone else.

I asked him if he liked working hard.  Yes, he said.

You can’t fake sincerity.   I gave him his whopping $2 Christmas tip and his eyes lit up but he stayed professional…for a 10 year old kid.

I told him my name was Mr. Friesen and shook his hand.  He told me his name and we concluded the business transaction.

I then went into the garage and finished getting stuff from the car with the biggest lump in my throat remembering the paper routes the boys had and helping them out and all the ‘fun’ that happens when you have a paper route.  Paper routes are a fantastic way to work, but better yet, a fantastic way to learn about dealing with people.

What my young paperboy is learning is that working hard is good.  And working hard can get you noticed.  Combine working hard with quality and consistency and you’ve got a Be The Best formula that will carry you for the rest of your life.

I remember when the boys would get a few bucks as tips.  It would make their day and week.  It allowed us as parents to tie the concepts of hard work to being rewarded.  It was a great learning experience.

Whether our paperboy headed down to the local convenience store to buy some gum and a slurpee or just kept the money and put it in his piggy bank, I know it sparked a thought in his mind about equating work with reward…you could see those wheels turning.

That’s a priceless Be The Best learning moment.