ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOSBALL?

“Mom, will you play foosball with me?”  Foosball.  The very last thing I wanted to do.  Sitting at my desk, I was trying to work on some airfare for my upcoming speaking engagements.  “Mom, will you?” Andrew said again.

After asking for a foosball table for months, I finally bought him a nice one for his birthday that is now the center of attention in my sunroom.  It’s not the way I envisioned my sunroom to be decorated, but I thought it would be a fun game for he and his friends to play.  He and his friends.  Not me.

I decide that I’d let him annihilate me one more time, so I got up to play.  After he scored five points in 6.4 seconds, he started talking.  By now, I was concentrating on scoring at least one goal.  “Mom, we have to make a balloon car for school by Friday.” I didn’t answer.  I was so close to scoring a goal.  “Mom, did you hear me?” he said.  I looked up and realized he was playing foosball and talking– at the same time.  I decided I’d try it too, even if I wasn’t going to do it very well.  I asked about the car, the purpose and what his ideas were.  After a few minutes, I realized that without trying to have a conversation, we were discussing schoolwork, his friends, the book he was reading, and his new sport, free running.

In a few, short moments around a foosball table, I received more information than I had in months.  I didn’t have to beg him to talk to me.  I didn’t have to ask many questions.  He just started talking.  It was amazing and comforting to me and a wonderfully fun time.

Yes, I lost that game.  I lost the next ten games too.  But, what I gained in that 30 minutes of playing foosball was worth the price of the table.

Using a foosball game as a conversation starter.  Who knew how amazing it could be?