On her very first day as a new P.E. teacher, Ms. Clark wanted to make a good impression. She stood at the edge of the soccer field, watching her class of sixteen-year-olds running around with excitement. The students were laughing, chasing the ball, shouting instructions to each other, and generally having the kind of fun that makes gym class the highlight of the day.
But then her eyes caught something different. At the far end of the field, standing perfectly still near the goalpost, was one boy. He wasn’t running, he wasn’t laughing, and he didn’t look like he was part of the game at all. He just stood there quietly, watching.Ms. Clark’s heart went out to him. Poor kid, she thought. Maybe he’s shy, maybe he doesn’t know how to play, or maybe the others left him out. Determined to show kindness, she walked across the field toward him.
When she reached him, she leaned down with a warm smile and asked softly, “Hey, are you okay? Why aren’t you playing with everyone else?”The boy glanced at her with a puzzled look, then shrugged and replied with total seriousness:“I am playing. I’m the goalie… they just haven’t let the ball come this way yet.”
For a moment, Ms. Clark blinked in surprise, and then she burst out laughing. The boy wasn’t lonely at all—he was simply guarding the net, waiting for his chance to shine.It was in that moment she realized that sometimes, what looks like someone being left out is actually just someone quietly doing their job… and in this case, doing it very effectively.