When games are more than just games

Our future leaders, both in sport and in life, are off to the First Nations Education Council Inter-School Games at the Universite Laval in Quebec City this week, and this is one of those times we get to pat them on the back and cheer them on!

Regardless of which school you cheer for, this event is a winner for all the communities that participate because, at their best, these games instill leadership skills, teamwork, camaraderie, and sportsmanship.

Some of our adult leaders could learn from these proud youth in how to achieve something as a unit, for the betterment of a team and not just individuals.

Sport is always a mix of fun and a challenge, but it’s also a metaphor for our road ahead as Onkwehón:we communities.

Learn to pass the ball or the puck effectively, selflessly, and you have a good chance to score; hog the ball (or puck) and try to do it yourself? Well, we know it takes a special kind of player to deliver goals day in and day out and they are rare, but even as snipers age, they must also adapt their game.

And most of us aren’t snipers.

In other words, the best ones who can score also know when to pass, or change off, or hit and block instead of just shooting.
In that respect, sport is the perfect metaphor for the road ahead – for Kanesatake, Kahnawake, Akwesasne, and every other Indigenous community.

You either adapt and work as a team or you fail trying to shoot when you should pass.

These athletes come from varying backgrounds of wealth, opportunity, and support, but when they are battling for first place, none of that matters.

Even winning, in this context, isn’t the ultimate goal, because it’s more about development and sportsmanship. Although winning is always a nice bonus.

If you were to make a team of our best athletes or leaders, and you had your pick, it would be quite impressive to see our best and brightest working together; but the reality is we must work with what we have, with who wants the job, and who is able to play, in sports, politics, at work and at home.

And that mix, of a finite amount of people for very specific roles, is a crapshoot.

So, we lean on sport because we need better leaders for a brighter future. We have so many amazing athletes, and that’s what our community knows so well. And although sport isn’t the only medium to measure the mettle of our youth, it certainly is the most popular.

A good study would be to take the best athletes we have now at these games and see where they are in 10 or even 25 years. Many fall off the radar because of poor work ethic, abuse, a lack of support, or just plain bad luck, among other things, but what about the ones who fight through it all and rise above?

They don’t have to be chiefs or lawyers or teachers; we need good carpenters, welders and tradespeople just as much.

And that’s what youth sports shows us above all else, that no matter what path you choose later, at one point in your life you were on the same team, so that sportsmanship has to continue in everyday life, and not just at the rink.

We have so many artists and creative types that fall under the radar at times because they don’t skate or shoot hoops, but they are just as valuable as that young phenom who scores 50 goals.

The FNEC Inter-School Games are for fun, but they are also a measuring stick along a long line of making yourself into a productive and respected community member.

You won’t be loved by everyone, but just as in sport, if you play the game hard and clean, even your opponents won’t be able to deny what you bring to the table.

Good luck to all athletes and enjoy every moment of this time in your life. Because one day you’ll wake up, old and retired, and the fondest memories you have could be of this very week.

Steve Bonspiel

The Eastern Door