5 Things I learned from my children

Over the years I have learned many things from many people, but I recently realised that I learned the most important life lessons from my children. I have 3 children aged, 12, 10 and 3 and I have learned many things from them, but I would like to highlight just 5 of the most important ideas that I have learned.

1. Learning happens all the time, no matter where you are or what you doing, learning happens all the time. You just need to be open to it.
2. Enjoy the now, as adults we spend way too much time focusing on what has happened in the past and what we want to do in the future that we forget to appreciate and enjoy the now.
3. Your relationships with people are most the important. You discover that children need your time and attention most of all rather than anything else.
4. Adaptability, children can find joy in almost all situations even in little ways. So instead of whining we should just find the good stuff and enjoy it.
5. Fearlessness, we should embrace the unknown with curiosity and enthusiasm rather then fear and trepidation.

These traits seem to be so simple and natural for children, which makes me wonder how and when do we as adults lose this ability? I have found that as an adult, it is very difficult to live these traits at least for me, but I try everyday nonetheless. I also try to ensure that my children dont lose them either.

Cheers 4 now

Hamba Kahle! to the World

Well, the FIFA world cup has come and gone and my great Dutch hope fades again. Congratulations are due to all involved in making the world cup in South Africa such a wonderful event. South Africa set out to host the best world cup ever and they did it in African style, siyabonga kakhulu (thank you very much). And a great thanks goes out to all those hospitable South Africans who opened their arms and welcomed the world in African style as well. And most all thank you to the fans from all over the world for coming to our wonderful country and enjoying this event with us. It certainly was a once in a lifetime!

Congratulations to Spain on winning their first world cup title and well deserved it is. I am distraught that my favorite team Holland, whom I have supported for many many years has once again come short but not from a lack of trying. They played with heart and passion and I salute that. They chose the correct tactics and executed it well. It was always going to be the battle between Robben and Casillas that determines the winner and unfortunately Casillas won.

It is Brazil's turn next to host this wonderful event and I wish them well to do something even better and I am looking forward to it. Thanks to all and Hamba Kahle!

FIFA's Technophobia

I like conspiracy theory's as much as the next person, but why don't FIFA really want to use technology in officiating soccer games? Technophobia, I think not! For as long as we have played world cups, there has been controversy and the best FIFA could come up with was FIFA Fair Play. So before every game we have soccer players walk out onto the pitch and pledge themselves to fair play and then start the game and demonstrate what fair play is NOT.

FIFA's response to this is usually an apology and a pledge not to introduce technology. I am beginning to wonder why? Why would an organisation that is responsible for the promotion and management of a world wide sport in which  supporters and fans are religious in their following, be opposed to fair play in their actions.

No technology allows players to cheat, plain and simple. Referees and linesman cannot be everywhere and are just human thus introducing human error as well. This creates a huge opportunity for manipulation and influence of soccer games. Now ordinarily I would imagine the any sport governing body would try to stamp out any opportunity to manipulate and influence a game, but not FIFA.

FIFA it seems, like as much opportunity to influence games as the bookies. Maybe just maybe the reason FIFA is so opposed to technology in sport is not technophobia but the limitation of its own ability to influence and manipulate games. Maybe they make money from both sides of the financial model, that is selling the sport and collecting royalties from bookies or maybe even being bookies themselves. This could possibly be one explanation for their insistence of no technology.

If you have any other ideas to FIFA's technophobia, I would be most interested in them....

Yours in sport and conspiracy theories....