Written By: Kristine Korman
Submitted by NWTO Lifetime Member, Lee Delfausse
1. When an old tennis player comes on the court, don’t let their unstable gait fool you.
2. Before they used the walkers and canes, they won tennis championships. They’ve honed their killer shots. You can see the determination in their fierce eyes, sharp lacquered nails, no nonsense hair and pursed lips.
3. Armed with knee braces, wrist braces, elbow patches and fortified with various anti-inflammatories, they skillfully return any shot to a place on the court where you are not. The winning shot will come off their racket over and over and over again.
4. They will smile sweetly and call each other dear, but when they look across the net at their opponents, they become assassins.
5. Between games they will mosey over to the bench lowering themselves with a groan, sharing experiences about body part replacements, and the best PT to go to.
6. You bounce on your feet determined to win the next game. You practice serves and moves while they saunter back on the court. You hit the hardest serve you can, fearing your force might hurt them. They dink your serve back and it rolls over the net bouncing twice before your young gazelle-like legs even come close.
7. You lob a shot and they volley it for a put away. You volley a shot and they lob the ball into the heavens, winning the point again. At the end of the match, they pat you on the shoulder and mutter ‘good playing dear’ as they pack up their gear - extra tennis rackets, ointments, sport glasses and numerous elixirs in bottles. You lick your wounds having been badly beaten by a woman old enough to be your grandmother.
8. You walk quietly behind them as they chat about lunch and doctor’s appointments. They all agree to meet later to kayak. Kayak?! Your legs are shaking and the walk to your car feels like a marathon.
9. Every week they school you with punishing strategic shots, but you learn. You get better. Along the way, you listen to the struggles and losses they have endured. You learn about heartbreak, illness and ruin, achievements and creativity, and how to rise from the ashes. Tennis is a way out. It’s a way to confess and then whack it away with your racket. It is a way to laugh off the bad times with people who have your back on and off the court.
10. One day, you are the old one, pushing through the pain in your body. You see your opponents are on the court with short skirts and high pony tails, jumping and practicing swings. They have you in their sights, but they don’t know the education your dear friends have given you before they left the tennis courts forever. You walk stiffly onto the courts ready to teach these kids a lesson. A lesson in patience and discipline. A lesson about listening to someone’s plight and setting their angst free from their spirit. A lesson in how a well-timed joke and a good laugh is more healing than any medicine that exists. A lesson about how playing a game with good sportsmanship and giving it your best is like an orchestra playing, a choir singing, or the warmth of a friend’s embrace.