Sports Can Be Bridge for Dads and Daughters
Laura Owens - Charlotte Observer
Jun 08, 2011
Ella Strauss, a sophomore at Davidson, was 5 when she first asked her dad why only boys played sports.
Former Sports Illustrated writer Robert Strauss said this rattled him enough to dig up a paper that same night and find out when the next Haddonfield High girls' basketball game would be.
The game was the next night, and upon watching, Ella declared to her dad that she would learn how to play basketball. Thus, the family's bonding over sports began.
In "Daddy's Little Goalie," Strauss shares anecdotes of raising his two daughters in the world of sports, going from tee ball to high school basketball, with everything in between, taking place in the family's hometown of Haddonfield, N.J.
Strauss, having grown up during a time when only boys played sports, learned it was still possible to bond with daughters over athletics.
"It's about being a dad of daughters because there's not much written about that," he said. "Most of the books written about parenting are moms writing, whether it's boys or girls, and then most every other one written by dads are written about sons. It really is another dynamic, and I think it's filled with great possibility."
He said his book isn't a how-to parenting guide but just tells how sports is the way he bonded with his daughters.
"I wanted to be with my kids but have most of the memories be fun," Strauss said. "Hopefully parents can learn how to do it. Sports clearly isn't the only venue. It may not even be the best venue, but it was ours."
Strauss said sports provided the most opportunities to be involved with his children while they were growing up.
"You have the opportunity to be with your kid this much, so you should learn about your kid," he said.
Ella has read the book.
"I was trying to anticipate the parts that would make me cry, which didn't happen until the last three or four pages," she said.
Strauss said hearing the book made Ella cry was the best compliment he had gotten on it.
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