Hey, sports fans and drama enthusiasts! Strap in, because have I got a tale from the court for you—no, not that kind of court, we’re keeping it civil here. It’s a story straight out of Reddit, the land of human conundrums and moral mazes, where a real person shared their family’s latest episode of ‘Conflict and Consequence.’ This one stars a high school volleyball prodigy, a pivotal prom night, and a perplexed parent. Folks, welcome to *The Prom Predicament: Volleyball vs. Voluminous Dresses*.
Our protagonist is a 16-year-old volleyball virtuoso, juggling the lofty expectations of prestigious club teams and the eyes of division 1 scouters. Sounds like a teen movie in the making, right? But here’s the twist: amidst this high-stakes sports saga, our star player makes the audacious choice to attend her high school prom, sidelining an out-of-state tournament her team was counting on her to ace. As you can imagine, this decision spiked more drama than a fifth-set match point.
Now, the aftermath of this choice is as predictable as a plot in a sports film. The following tournament, our teen sensation found herself warming the bench more than the volleyball. Naturally, she cries foul, unhappy with her diminished role, and looks to her parent to step in and rally for her cause. But here’s where the plot thickens: the parent, our Reddit raconteur, decides this is the perfect serve for a life lesson, refusing to intervene and siding with the coach’s decision to bench her.
Could this be a tale of tough love, or is it a misstep in parenting? Before you pick a side, consider the dynamics at play. On one team, we have the values of commitment, teamwork, and the pursuit of excellence. On the opposing side, the irreplaceable high school memories, the weight of teenage milestones, and the ever-important social rites of passage.
Now, let’s dive into the family feud that ensued. Our protagonist is benched, not just in the game but metaphorically by her own parent, who sees the prom as a ‘silly dance’ outweighed by the gravity of a sports scholarship and team loyalty. The coach’s decision? Justified in the parent’s eyes as a consequence of choices made. The husband, however, serves a contrasting viewpoint, defending the importance of prom in the high-stakes game of teenagehood, questioning whether the coach’s call was an overstep.
So, where does Roger’s Hot Take land amidst all this? Here it is, hotter than the hottest of serves: Life is a series of calculated risks and choices, each with its own set of consequences. Our high-flying volleyball star chose a memory over a match, and whether that was right or wrong isn’t for us or a disgruntled coach to say. But here’s the real serve: learning to face the outcomes of our decisions is what shapes us.
In this story, everyone’s playing the game of life, making calls they believe are right, be it the coach, the parent, or our prom-going protagonist. Perhaps the real lesson here isn’t about choosing volleyball over velvety dresses but about learning to navigate the consequences of our decisions with grace and grit.
Teenage milestones like prom come once in a lifetime, much like the opportunity to play volleyball at an elite level. It’s a tough call between unforgettable memories and unparalleled opportunities. But at the end of the day, it’s about what lessons we learn when the game is over, and how we play the next.
Whether you side with the parent, the coach, or the daughter, let’s agree on one thing: life is not about the mistakes we make but how we bounce back from them. And sometimes, just sometimes, the best plays are made off the court.
Remember, it’s all about the serve and the return—in volleyball and in life. Now, what’s your next move?
Original story
Quick details. Daughter (16) is a junior in high school. She has excelled her entire life at volleyball and plays on a prestigious club team in our area. She is currently being scouted by division 1 universities.
2 weeks ago, her highschool had prom. She went, even though I thought she shouldn’t. She had an out of state tournament that she skipped to go to prom. Other girls on the team skipped their school’s prom for this tournament. I told her what I thought she should do, but I allowed her to make her own decision and wasn’t going to interfere.
She had another tournament this past weekend where, unsurprisingly, she barely played. She normally starts and plays most games but she sat on the bench most of the time for this tournament. She told me that she thinks this is unfair, and she is being benched because she went to prom. She wants me to talk to the coach about her decision and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
I told her what I felt. I flat out told her no I would not talk to her coach. I told her that she is part of a team, and had a commitment to them and she decided to be selfish and go to a silly dance. She argued with me saying how this is a special occurrence. I reminded her 2 things. 1) That other girls on the team prioritized the tournament over their proms. And 2) she’s lucky to be as talented as she is, and she will most likely not pay for college. This is an opportunity all those prom goers would probably love to have. I warned her this would happen, and she decided not to listen to me.
She is still upset with me; I told her I hope she learned something about being part of a team. My husband thinks I am wrong because prom is important to a teenager and thinks the coach is being unfair. But I have 0 issue with what the coach did.