Created to Be
The Created to Be podcast is hosted by Bethany Pigott, Justin Pigott, Darius Brown, and Brandi Morgan. Episodes incorporate what’s happening in FCA at Mississippi State, fun and lighthearted conversations that help you get to know the hosts and their guests, and real-life topics and themes being discussed with coaches and athletes.
Created to Be
Catching Up, The World Cup, and The Offseason
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In this episode of the Created to Be podcast, Bethany, Justin, and Brandi catch up on summer adventures, the excitement surrounding the World Cup, and what they've observed from athletes during the offseason before diving into a conversation about why the work no one sees often matters the most.
Drawing from their own experiences as athletes, coaches, and ministry leaders, they discuss what the offseason is really for—building endurance, refining skills, embracing discipline, and allowing God to shape us in the hidden seasons before public opportunities arrive. Whether you're an athlete, parent, coach, or simply walking through a season that feels quiet, this conversation is a reminder that preparation is never wasted and that today's unseen faithfulness often becomes tomorrow's greatest strength.
Reflection Question:
What are you doing today that your future self will thank you for?
Books Mentioned in the Episode:
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It's like you can go to conditioning and wait, and you're like, uh, this is so like not flashy, not fun. But then, you know, it's gonna be tested whenever the season comes. Welcome to the Created to Be podcast. We're glad to be back with several people around the table today. Uh, we got Justin here with us today.
SPEAKER_00Yo.
SPEAKER_04And Brandy. Hey. It's been a minute. It's been a minute.
SPEAKER_07It's in a long time.
SPEAKER_01Welcome back, Marianne.
SPEAKER_07Yeah, welcome back. It's been a while.
SPEAKER_04No Darius today, but it's good, you know, during these slower months to get back around the table. We've had a few uh episodes of just some interviews that Jason Crowder did with some baseball players, Mississippi State baseball players. So that was good to run those, but now we can get back into some of these conversations that we enjoy to have with one another. And um, so yeah, what have we been up to over the past few weeks? I thought maybe we could start with that. We've been we traveled a little bit. June has been a month where we, you know, we planned all the camps and travel and everything, but we're pretty much staying put in July. So we went to Ocean Springs.
SPEAKER_01We did, we did, seemingly sister and VBS time. But uh also had a good trip to Athens. Um it didn't turn out the way that we wanted. Um, but it was two very, very entertaining baseball games um in a tough environment against a really, really good team, and we're also a really, really good team. So um it was great to support the guys, and uh, it's tough because you know you know, at the end it's all done and they're about to get back on the bus kind of for the last time. And uh yeah, it's tough because it's just the way these teams form so quickly now, and um, a lot of these guys aren't gonna be back for a variety of reasons, and uh on to the next. They have to move on to rebuild and like instantly the next day, like the portal I think opened, and so or a little bit before, and so then they had to go rebuild again. I think July June 1st is when it opened. So they were already in portal mode, which is crazy because for the coaches too, that means no downtime. It's like you get the drive back and then you're you know they get a downtime, I think in August for like a week or two, and then they get here and then they're going again. So but that's it. Yeah, and then they'll get a break, I think Christmas break around there. Like Coach O'Connor does a great job of just saying, get out of here.
SPEAKER_08Yeah.
SPEAKER_01But yeah, I mean it's it's complete rebuilding mode. And it was really interesting, even on an interview, Coach O'Connor talked about like his team roster, like his uh uh forming a team, like his playbook, his book for it. And so he has a specific notebook squared away with notes and things that are building a team for next year's team in the middle of the season. So it's like I'm putting it away for this. So um, I don't know, it's probably old school having a notebook, yeah.
SPEAKER_04I need something to write on, I need to see.
SPEAKER_01But it's just wild to be thinking about that. And then even if, you know, I'm probably getting into the weeds here, but thinking about the team that they have built already and the people they're bringing in, they're bringing in a lot of they've found a lot of freshmen, uh like player of the year type in comp different conferences. And like three of them that are actually coming here. So they're gonna be sophomores, not draft eligible. So you're gonna have for sure two years with these guys. So it's kind of interesting to see the approach, what they're building for, who they're going after. So they got kids with a year under their belt, but also they're gonna have two years here um to hopefully develop and thrive, um, which is exciting because we have you know, Jacob Parker for two more, and you know, we got arms this year. Yeah, a lot of arms, a lot of experienced arms.
SPEAKER_04So um we went basically those two trips to Hoover for the SEC tournament and then for the super regionals were kind of spontaneous trips for us. Those were not in the calendar plan. Yeah. So I think that that was like I felt like that was a first time as a family of five, and we have a dog that we always have to like figure out what to do with her, that we just were like, okay, we're gonna do this. So that was kind of nice to know we can do that. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05I mean, I don't know how easy it was, but yeah.
SPEAKER_01I'm excited for the the new guys that I mean, the guys that have left, it's always tough for the ones that have left, but they're gonna get opportunities. Um, it is tough though, because you we we talk about this a lot. When you get out there in the portal, you hope you land somewhere.
SPEAKER_04But then it turns out good for some because we had a guy on the championship team.
SPEAKER_01Nolan Stevens won him a national title with Oklahoma. Um probably didn't get to play as much as he wanted to.
SPEAKER_07Wait, did y'all watch did y'all watch the Call of the World Series? Brett did more than I did. Okay.
SPEAKER_04Did you know the story about the brothers that were on Georgia and the French? I did see that. I did see that. That was like, you know, we talked about during just Olympics, March Madness, this these other things. I don't know if there was anything we highlighted from the CFP. I mean, probably like Indiana and Mendoza and all that, but unsignetic stories. Yeah, the stories. And I it's funny that because our kids start getting like that. There were like if we don't really have a team to root for, they're like, I'm rooting for this team because of the story. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But that was really like a sweet thing to follow, like how amazing that was.
SPEAKER_07I mean, can you imagine? No.
SPEAKER_04Like this would be like if Brett Daniel and Luke, are they far enough? How far apart?
SPEAKER_07Yeah, they're 18 months. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Like if you and Brett were in the stands and they're playing against each other.
SPEAKER_07I guess it's a win-win for the parents.
SPEAKER_04I know. I was like, well, at least, but I thought this would really stink though, if whoever made it out of the two, Georgia or Oklahoma, if then they made it to the championship series and then lost. You're like, you had two legit chances to get there. And then yeah, so I was glad that Oklahoma won it for a variety of reasons.
SPEAKER_01And home runs for both of them. Yeah, that's that was cool. You know, the younger brother didn't have many home runs. I know.
SPEAKER_07Whenever it said it was like fourth for the year or something, I was like, what is insane?
SPEAKER_03Yes, that is so wild. So what did y'all do?
SPEAKER_07Um well, you know, we went to Haleyville, found a bunch of waterfalls. We stayed for three nights. Is that in Mississippi? Alabama. Okay. Yeah. It's like east of Tupelo. It's probably two hours. It wasn't bad. Okay. Um, but it was really fun just to get away. Most of the places you're at, you don't have service once you're there. So was it just your family or like extended? It was just our family. Normally we go to the lake, but the boat was messed up, so it was kind of our kids were very disappointed at first because we've gone to the lake for like 15 years. Yeah. And it's just our family that goes to the lake. And so after the fact though, Brett was like, I think it was really cool to experience something new. Yeah. Like, because he was kind of hesitant.
SPEAKER_04Now you'll be flying overseas in no time. Yeah, doubt it.
SPEAKER_07Doubt that. Maybe out west. Maybe. Um, but we did lots softball, baseball pretty much every weekend. That's what we were doing. So did anybody, was there any stories like of sickness or anything over this lore? Yeah, it was nice. It was a bit more. Did it rain? Wasn't it it did rain a little bit? Um, maybe the last morning, because we wanted to go, where did we want to go? Oh, Dismal Canyon. But a storm was coming. So we went to Natural Bridge, and we should have started with the Natural Bridge, because once we saw that, after we had already seen like all the amazing waterfalls and all that, we paid $30, I think no, maybe it was ten dollars a person to get in. Anyway, we ended up paying like $60 or $70 to go watch, walk through, and see things that we had already seen better. And so we were all like, Oh man, that was a waste of money. Not knocking them. We should have just started there. Yeah. But we weren't sure if we were gonna do that. But then when it rained, we had to.
SPEAKER_04So well, that's cool to know that that's just like right over there. Yeah.
SPEAKER_07I mean, and that the house we stayed in was so nice. Like she had the drawers labeled, it was like very clean, three bedrooms, like we had plenty of space. That's where we watched the softball games. We would come back, we'd plan our trip times around like when softball was playing. So it was good.
SPEAKER_04Abby and I just got back from beta convention in Nashville, the National Beta Convention, and I went pretty ignorant, not knowing much of anything about. I mean, she's been in beta club this past year, and they do some stuff at their school, but their school has never I mean, it's a private school. They have a really small group who are in the beta club, and so you go and there's all these public schools there, and anyway, it's just it's a it's a lot going on too. There's competitions and there's election um happening for officers, and they do uh pen trading, which was insane. Um, lots of adults getting into pen trading. They're like having having these kids do their um, I can't think of there's a phrase for this, but anyways, like they would be like, Well, I'll trade you this pen, but I want this particular pen. And so it's like these kids could like go and get the pen this person wants, you know, so this adult's not having to do anything. I'm just like, what is this world that we have entered into for the week? But um, I told Justin, I think I started a little bit like, what's going on? And then by the end, I'm like, I have so many ideas for you. So we got back on what day do we call Saturday night. But that was kind of the end cap of our variety of things. But I'm thankful to just like be here for July and you know, just able to pop into maybe some practices. And we're gonna talk about um that this is the the topic for today is off season because that's what these athletes and coaches that they're in, and some are I don't know, I guess maybe you know, some are out recruiting. I don't know, are the portals still open for some sports? Are we done?
SPEAKER_01No, I mainly no.
SPEAKER_04Well the thing I'm just baseball, I think this is like totally out of probably softball too, right? I don't know when it closes.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04But like this might be out of order. But I was gonna ask you guys this when we talk when you were mentioning the baseball portal. Do you think we'll ever get used to like new rosters every year?
SPEAKER_01Yes.
SPEAKER_04Like I don't think we're there yet.
SPEAKER_01No, we're not there yet.
SPEAKER_04But I don't know how to probably next year.
SPEAKER_05I doubt it. I just don't know how to get used to it, you know.
SPEAKER_04This was a conversation I was having with a coach just before I walked in here today. Like, I'm like, is there anybody that's just found the way to be like happy with this scenario? Like, how do we get to that point? I don't know, but maybe that'll be a conversation throughout the year that we have. Um, but okay, so just one of the things I wanted to highlight, we talked a little bit about what we've done over the summer. And I know Darius, they have like youth trips and all kinds of stuff, so he'll come back with all kinds of stories, I'm sure. But we did an episode about I think it was about four episodes ago, and we I I just titled it the comments episode because we basically took Brad Smith's comments and uh talked about it. And so I did reach out to Brad, and at some point we will have him on to explain himself because some of these stories are pretty wild. So if you haven't listened to that one, it's a really fun episode. You can go back to that and prep yourself.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, for who knows how many details we might have gotten wrong to.
SPEAKER_04Oh yeah, yeah. Um, but he seems to be a very uh adventurous guy. Sure, yeah, yeah. And so I he probably has even more stories that we want to talk to him about. Um, but before we get into the topic about just off season and answering some questions about that and having discussion, I wanted to, because we're right in the middle of World Cup and we have Brandy who played soccer. You know, you got two ignorant soccer people on this side of the table, and then you've got Brandy over here who actually knows. But you know what you're watching. Yeah. At least you know what you're watching. I mean, I just mentioned to Eli, um, he is kind of getting into soccer, and so I was like, How do you watch this game? And he was like, I don't know. I mean, I just kind of watch. And so the only thing I pointed out to him was like, notice how they're kind of staying in triangles like everywhere, like how they move, you know, just to like take note of that. But that's about the only thing.
SPEAKER_07I'll have to send you something I saw on Instagram. It was like giving you pointers for what your position is, like what to watch on and off the ball. It was like kids need to see that, right?
SPEAKER_04So, yeah, anyway, so I just was like, that's all I got for you.
SPEAKER_07So Brett likes on YouTube they play like the 20-minute extended highlights. That's what Brett likes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's like, I don't want to watch the whole game.
SPEAKER_04He likes watching the whole game if I'm watching the whole game because he likes to be like, you know, I wonder with these stadiums being so full, like I don't know, like the craze kind of gets me. I know that Coach Castro with women's basketball, a question that I have for him, when I get a chance to talk to him, he went, I think, to a game versus that it was Columbia, right?
SPEAKER_08Mm-hmm. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04And so I just have quite like I'm sure part of it is the environment. Yeah. But I mean, gosh, the amount of time that you watch, but I feel like it is so satisfying when somebody finally scores.
SPEAKER_07Like it's like I think that's what makes it so different and right boring to most because there's not a lot of goal scoring. Right. It depends, I guess, on what kind of but like go into those games outside of the uh stadiums, you'll have like different things from different cultures. Like people will be dressed up as dragons and like it's like a whole thing going on outside too.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_07And I don't know if y'all saw the video of the um Norwegian guys playing the drum and everybody rowing, like the guys were set up and then the stands, like stuff like that.
SPEAKER_01Orange Army, the Dutch, man, they have this dance left, right, jumping around, a variety of things, and they just like will swarm a stadium. Like they call them the orange army for a reason. It's amazing.
SPEAKER_07Yeah, it's amazing. It is really cool, like to see the different cultural things that like come in. So that's pretty cool.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, so that's what I was gonna ask is like what have you like this is a very broad topic for the stretch, is just World Cup. But I have a few like facts that I looked up. But the funniest things you've seen on Instagram or social media about foreigners in America.
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah, like them getting to experience a Waffle House. That's what I was saying.
SPEAKER_04Walmart. I was like, Walmart?
SPEAKER_01Walmart, yeah. Um I mean Yeah, it's just it's amazing.
SPEAKER_04I feel like nothing I'm gonna say is gonna be Texas Roadhouse one was a good one. Surprising to anybody listening if you've paid it, like if you've seen anything, because like ranch is like a really big deal.
SPEAKER_07Yeah. That's yeah. So they were saying that the service was like the best service they've ever experienced. And I was like, What? Like customer service. Yes. Yeah. Like in the restaurants and stuff like that.
SPEAKER_04Like everybody's so nice, and I was like, I have seen several of just like the hospitality and like that type of stuff.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, there's been quite a few couples in Texas, I think that people have bought their meal for them. Oh, okay. They knew they were in for the World Cup. Yeah, yeah. So that's they were just like blown away. Like, who does that? That's unbelievable.
SPEAKER_07I'm kind of wondering, like, do they come for a game and go back? Or do they come and stay? Because like go into a game, it's like a thousand dollars a ticket for the cheap seat.
SPEAKER_04Somebody was interviewing people about how much did you pay to get here.
SPEAKER_01And yeah, I mean, it was Yeah, but they form I think a lot of these people form like save a lot to do these trips, and they're here for it seems like a month.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and they're because they're like, it's doesn't I mean one guy was like it doesn't even really matter because it's this so I think that's where I'm kind of in my brain. Like I'm like, what it's just amazing to me what people will decide like this is a life, like this is an opportunity of a lifetime. Like you're not gonna that is worth whatever. Like I can't even tell you what I don't I don't even know if I would have anything that I would say is worth going in, like an experience that would be going potentially in debt for I don't know that they are or not.
SPEAKER_07Yeah, but I mean I'd you worked hard to even save up all this money for so long. I mean, I guess people do that for Disney. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Um, or like I mean vacations and stuff, I guess, but I don't know. It's dedication.
SPEAKER_01In a weird way, I think this might actually be more than Disney. What? This trip for World Cup. I think it might be more expensive than Disney.
SPEAKER_04Well, no, that's what I yeah, it is. Uh I would I mean, especially with international. Yeah. I mean, we did buy tickets for um when the Olympics come around. We had hoped to go to LA, but then part of like the ticket drop that I got, it was like, which I think Justin and I could have gotten into like handball or women's cricket or whatever, but I don't know if the kids would have been like, yay, we're flying to LA to watch, you know. I mean, they want to see the stuff that you see on TV that's like the main primetime stuff. And so we ended up going with um rounds of soccer in the first, like, first rounds in two games. Uh, and that was all, I mean, it was maxed out at what I was willing to pay, but it's in a different location. So because they're playing in multiple locations before they get to like the finals in LA. I think they'll have some games in LA, but you know, just like they're doing for the World Cup, but it's like all over. And so for me, I was like, well, it's not in LA, but it's still like Olympics experience. But I mean, I guess that's the closest thing, but I wasn't willing to like figure out how to fork out all this money to get to a specific thing in LA so that we could all experience as a family. I'm like, how can we do this for the it's crazy?
SPEAKER_05A piece of the experience that's not watching it on TV. Surely we can get a shirt and be like, we were somewhere in that uh experience.
SPEAKER_04It wasn't actually in LA, but anyways, pretty crazy. Um okay, y'all mentioned this already with the Dutch and and what did you say? Who the Norwegian? Yeah, about the other cultures, what you've seen. But anything else that you've seen or heard, like I know we saw some signs. I was gonna mention when Jordan played the other night, I was gonna mention, but then also like any things you've heard from the commentators or just cultural things that you've seen or experienced.
SPEAKER_01Well, the commentator was great. There was one when England was playing and they were not playing well, and they were playing in Boston. Yeah. And uh, I think at the field there in Boston, and so um he says, and the English tend to struggle based on history in Massachusetts, and it was like, oh my god, you're like that guy has been waiting for it. He's been waiting for that. That was great. But even when we go back to um the Texas Roadhouse, I know but they they were just like blown away with unlimited drinks, yeah, free refills, and they give us this bread, and then it doesn't charge me for the bread. And they just keep bringing out bread, and then they were like this and this, and it was just like one thing to the next, and they left and they were like this is a good thing. I wonder how many of them have felt like trash.
SPEAKER_07That's what I was gonna say. So I kept telling my kids, I was like, Yeah, but also like look at our culture and what we put in our bodies, and we might kind of like once in a lifetime experience for them, but yeah, they can go back and correct right.
SPEAKER_04Um, there was a sign that Jordan there was two signs that I saw one was I sold my camel to be here or something like that. We sold our camels to be here. Yeah, and then the other was sorry, Michael Jordan, we were the first. I I might be botching that. Well, do you remember sorry Michael?
SPEAKER_01We were the first Jordan. Yeah, that's what it was. Yeah, that's and so it had, I think, the crying Jordan on there, maybe. Maybe the crying Jordan picture. You know that that's funny. That is those are two that we caught the other night.
SPEAKER_04Um, but anyways, it's been interesting to watch. Um okay, did you know, Brandy? Because we looked this up and Justin already knows this because I asked him the other day. Three of the professional, three of the eight professional athletes who earn over a billion dollars like while currently playing. There's a list of only eight, and three of them are actually soccer players. Can you name them?
SPEAKER_07I mean, Messi's gonna be one. Yes. Uh Renato?
SPEAKER_04Yes.
SPEAKER_07And then he didn't get this one, so you'll beat Justin if he gets it. That's gonna be tricky because is it the Norwegian player?
SPEAKER_01No. He's not there yet. They're still young. Like him and Mbappe are still too young.
SPEAKER_07Yeah.
SPEAKER_01I'll give you a hint, he's a Brazilian.
SPEAKER_07I don't know.
SPEAKER_01It's an Amor.
SPEAKER_07Okay. That makes sense. That was the one I missed. That makes sense.
SPEAKER_01He's been playing long enough to be a good one.
SPEAKER_04But I think it's crazy for a sport that we, I mean, don't really probably notice until the World Cup or the Olympics.
SPEAKER_07America is way behind with soccer. Right. Mississippi is way, way, way behind.
SPEAKER_04Mississippi's way behind on a lot of things. Yeah, but but like that three of eight, I thought that was crazy. Yeah. To think about how three of eight would be soccer.
SPEAKER_07That's crazy.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. And the others, you want to take a guess at any others on that list? Um no clue. Tiger Woods. Yeah. Phil Mickelson. I can't say his last name. Mickelson. Mickelson. Of course, Michael Jordan. Or LeBron. No, he wasn't. No, that's right. LeBron was on that list. Um, the tennis guy, what's his name?
SPEAKER_00Oh, Federer.
SPEAKER_04Yes. Was it him?
SPEAKER_00Mm-hmm. It was Federer. Because I said it was Joke Fitch and you're like, no, it's actually Federer.
SPEAKER_04And I'm trying to think, I don't know, I haven't been counting. But anyways, I just thought it was crazy that three were soccer players.
SPEAKER_07What's so neat to me to me is like I was trying to figure out how they decide where they're gonna play, like who they're gonna play for. Um, but I mean, of course there's rules behind it, but um, they play with each other in like leagues and stuff, and then they had to go like compete against each other in like what's probably way more important than a league in a lot of cultures. And so I'm like, you have to like switch on the field, like, okay, I'm not their friend anymore, their teammate, like well that's how I remember USA hockey, a lot of those guys same thing.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Um and then I was thinking about even like some of our US players. They could play for other teams, but have chosen to play for the US. And I don't know the rules on that. Which then made my brain made me think of the pole vaulter that jumps for Sweden. But what's his name?
SPEAKER_01Oh uh Duplantis.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. But like he could jump for the United States, but he wanted his parents to be part of like his coaching staff, and like they wouldn't. That's the story I heard. And so he doesn't jump for the US. Like I just all these things are so crazy. Um, but I think there was like a guy maybe on our team, I might be misspeaking, but that might have could have played for like two other countries.
SPEAKER_07But yeah, it's something with like your parents and then your parents' parents.
SPEAKER_04Wow.
SPEAKER_07Um, and then also where you're born, and then maybe if you live there for five years or longer or something like that.
SPEAKER_01Well, France's team is like that was like a couple French born. And the rest are not over the place. It's like, hmm, what kind of team we got going on here? France.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Can you guess who created the modern game of football? Can you guess? A person? The country. Oh. This would not have been my guess.
SPEAKER_01Well, I know I was hearing the first World Cup winner or something over there was like Uruguay. But I don't know if it has anything to do with South America.
SPEAKER_04Knocks all those out. Like awesome. I don't know.
SPEAKER_01Based on the pride somewhere in Europe, probably.
SPEAKER_04Another guess? You're you got at least the continent right. England? Yes. Of course.
SPEAKER_00Of course it was England.
SPEAKER_07That was kind of actually easy. I think you threw us off.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, like uh um, and so this was like it says that that happened in 1863 when like the football association was formed. And then they like gave they created the modern um rules, but countries were already playing like a very variation of the game. So then you have like the official like formation of these different leagues and different things like that. I guess you know, my guess, I'm not really reading this, um, but would be after like England made that. But the first official international soccer match took place November 30th, 1872. Well, Scotland, England.
SPEAKER_01Nice.
SPEAKER_04That's really sad. It ended in a zero-zero draw.
SPEAKER_03That's like so disappointing.
SPEAKER_01No, no, what a letdown. Sorry, I I can't do it. I'm just still not there on the draw.
SPEAKER_05Oh, I know Justin hates the tie. He's like, this is ridiculous.
SPEAKER_01But it makes sense. It makes more sense now on the pool play. Yeah. You know, I get it. But because you'd be here forever.
SPEAKER_07Yeah. Well, there was a game yesterday. Canada, no, who was playing? Well, it was knockout. South Africa.
SPEAKER_01We're playing right now. We got some games about to go on today.
SPEAKER_07Um, but they couldn't end in a tie. Correct. Yeah. It was a so would they do PKs or do they do extra time? It's still in a tie.
SPEAKER_04Okay, so then FIFA was founded in 1904, and seven European nations were part of that. And then it just continued to grow. But then it was like so 1904, and then to 1930 was when the World Cup happened.
SPEAKER_07So which I kind of think is crazy. So that was when the US either won or got second or third. Maybe they got third. Because I don't think they've ever won. The men's team has never won. So I think they got third. But soccer's n wasn't even that big over here. So like we had to have players from other countries at the end of the day.
SPEAKER_04It says by the early 1910s, FIFA expanded beyond Europe, welcoming countries like South Africa, Argentina, Chile, and the United States.
SPEAKER_07That's just crazy to me. Like we did our best in the first one we ever played in.
SPEAKER_01Yes. And then we went quiet for 50 years.
SPEAKER_04Um, oh my gosh, this is kind of crazy. In 1921, I'm not gonna try to say this Frenchman's name, but he became the third president of FIFA, and then it says a position he would hold for a record 33 years. He believed that soccer could promote world peace and spearhead the dream of a tournament independent of the Olympic Games. So 1930 was the inaugural men's world cup in Uruguay. So maybe that's what you were also thinking about. And then that was only 13 teams. Think about that. I thought about this when I read this. 1930, 13 teams participating, they're having to travel across the Atlantic Ocean by ship.
SPEAKER_05Oh wow. Like, think about that. It's a trip. Yeah, like in the 1930s, what?
SPEAKER_04Um, and the host won, Uruguay won that. Nice, but anyways, I was like, yeah, I don't think.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, because they didn't have to travel. Yeah, I know exactly. Everybody else is like, yeah, exhausted, sick, exhausted, whatever.
SPEAKER_07Speaking of, did y'all see the um where Norway like sit shipped their own food over? Yeah, I think um salmon, oranges, and Argentina did some of that too.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, some of the teams have like they can still eat in the states and have certain things, but their main meals and build up, they're gonna control the nutrition.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Well, I was wondering for this is no offense to like Mexico being a host, but just the variety of foods. I haven't been to Mexico in a long time, but like how what do you have access to there? We have a variety of cuisine here in the United States. I mean, it might be, you know, in Mississippi, you might not find as much variety, but like how you would have access if you're playing in Mexico to certain things that taste as much like home. Whereas I feel like you could probably find something close to it if you're in the States or even in Canada.
SPEAKER_01Well, they bring their own team chefs too and do all that. I mean, if you're going to invest, yeah, well, and we could talk food, we can get lost in the food deal. Like, there's things that are banned.
SPEAKER_07Yeah.
SPEAKER_01That we are we have here are banned in Europe and other countries because it's poison and we eat it right joyfully.
SPEAKER_05That's why they're like, it tastes so good over here. It's killing me, but it's so good. Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I did um I don't know if I saw somebody, either you or Abby, somebody told me about a team sending their food over.
SPEAKER_07Just when they said the amount of salmon and cheese, I was like, what? Oranges? Like it makes sense. I mean, when my brother went to England for two weeks, I think he went for two weeks for soccer just to put on it's like a mission trip. But he said his stomach struggled in the beginning just from changing your appetite.
SPEAKER_04I've also wondered that for when Olympians go, you know, to the wherever they're at.
SPEAKER_07Like, I mean, I know that they have incredible food, but uh I read Sidney McLaughlin's book, and she was talking about when she first went in. I think she didn't want to run anyway, she was nervous, she wasn't ready, she was so young, and I think she did her body wrong food-wise, and then she spent a couple days sick in the room. Yeah. And she was by herself because I think they had like she didn't stay with her parents because they had to stay. Yeah, they had to stay. Like in these Olympic boarding games, yeah, or whatever.
SPEAKER_04So like Yeah, I've just like depending on where that country is, like, I mean, surely you'd wait to be adventurous too in trying food.
SPEAKER_07You're 16. I know.
SPEAKER_04Look, I had a um, this might be embarrassing to say, but I just ignorant of food, timing, whatever, I ate a chicken fried steak the night before I was supposed to run cross-country meat. Yeah. So I felt pretty heavy the next day. And it was a regional meet, and so I didn't do very well. And I got a little shamed by my mom after that.
SPEAKER_08She's like, what were you doing? What were you doing?
SPEAKER_04Uh I mean, I pushed through. I mean, I probably was in the like top 25 or something like that. But I mean, you had to make top 10 to go to state, you know. But I did feel terrible, but it was like, I mean, how old was I at the time? Probably 15. Yeah. And you don't know what you don't know. I've learned a lot since then for sure.
SPEAKER_07But anyway, that was about we weren't your typical cross-country runners. Lee Parker, when she ran, I was always like, All right, the night before we're gonna do right, we're gonna eat your carbs, blah, blah, blah. Football games were always the night before. So we started this thing, Chick-fil-A sandwich. Like, that's what she had every Friday night before a game, her seventh and eighth grade year, and she did great. Yeah, well.
SPEAKER_04I was like, You've encouraged me, but maybe it was something else.
SPEAKER_07No, but it's probably not sustainable. She was probably just young. Yeah, yeah. Her body could handle that a little bit better at 12, 13.
SPEAKER_04We had a massive side cramp the next day, and it was not it was not good. But that kind of transitions well into off season because there are put they are these athletes are putting in work now that's gonna pay off whenever they, you know, perform. I got to go buy basketball today, and it was fun to see um them just do a lot of the drills that you know, once you get in season, you're scout, you're going over scouting report, you're doing a few of those things, but you don't get to really see like fundamental type stuff. So um it's kind of fun to see that style of things going on right now. Uh so I was just gonna ask, like, what typically do y'all know from your experience, but also from what you observe, what is happening in the off season?
SPEAKER_01Well, there was a uh shoot, there's there's a lot of lifting and playing, and some are resting, but for the most part, I mean, it doesn't stop for a lot of them. They'll go home for a little bit, but then they're back at it. They have summer duties.
SPEAKER_07I was gonna say to me, a lot of them their resting is one week. They're like, I'm gonna take a week off and that's it.
SPEAKER_01I it was not that case for me. Like I I did play summer ball for a couple seasons, but when even Christmas break, I would not pick up a ball for a couple weeks. And some people were like, that's crazy. And I'm like, well, maybe I shouldn't have done that. I don't know.
SPEAKER_04But sometimes when I would take that time off, yeah, and then go shoot basketball again, I would like be shooting lights out. Like I was like, how can I shoot so well? I haven't touched the ball in like two weeks.
SPEAKER_01It doesn't stop. I mean, and if you just look at their bodies too, I mean you have freshmen coming in now that just don't look like freshmen, they look like you know, seniors in college, and it's just it's unreal of just the build and what's being put into these athletes at such a young age and the disciplines that they're creating at such a young age. Um, the good and the bad that comes with that.
SPEAKER_04Were y'all given like summer packets?
SPEAKER_07Yeah.
SPEAKER_04What were in the what were in the summer packets?
SPEAKER_07I was just lots of running. Yeah. I mean, there was some lift-in, but lots of running. Like what type of running? Like just go out and run, or did you have like sprints? No, it was sprints, but then you might have long distance days and beep test days. I don't know if you know what that is, but yeah. Oh, we did the beep test. So it's mainly that. Of course, you want to play like a lot of people play pickup. Yeah. I'm sure now they play with their clubs. We didn't play with clubs still in the summer, then we played pickup soccer, so yeah. Did y'all have packets?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we had packets, workout packets.
SPEAKER_04What were in the packets?
SPEAKER_01I mean, it was three days a week type stuff. Keep going.
SPEAKER_04Did you feel like you were able to do what your coaches wanted you to do? Like with because sometimes you go, if you especially if you go home, you might not have the same access to resources like you would if you were here.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it was a little bit of a challenge. Yeah. Um, and then find a throw-in partner. Sometimes not the easiest back home consistently. So yeah, it wasn't the best at times over the break. But I mean, I found a way to go get it done.
SPEAKER_04That was hard about basketball. It's like you gotta have a a gym or you know, a coach that would let you in, and that was hard. Um, I know for volleyball, something that's really interesting. I don't know if it applies to soccer as well, like here at Mississippi State, but um one thing I learned just being around them is when they come back, they have to run camps or they have to be part of the camp staff. And then they also, whenever they have their like open gym, whatever for teams, like it's captain run. Because the coaches can't come in until I mean I want to say like maybe the coaches get three weeks with them before season starts. Maybe it's four. I might be misspeaking. So anybody is willing, you know, you can correct me on that. But I just thought that's a crazy dynamic that you know I never experienced with basketball. Like our coaches were the ones that ran practices in the offseason. We never I think it's great for like leadership development. I mean, you just gotta step up, you gotta come up with the practice plan, you gotta execute it, people gotta listen to you, and then you got this whole dynamic of thankfully at at Mississippi State, the team's primarily the same. They've got some extra people, but they got most of their people back. But like, think about that. Like, if your whole team changes and then you have captain's practice. Yeah. Like, I'm like, that would be a major challenge, I would think. Um, but yeah, lots of lifting weights. I think that athletes now don't have as long of a break. That's just my assumption. Yeah. I mean, basketball, we weren't required to be here until July. Well, these girls have been back for a couple weeks, I think, already practicing.
SPEAKER_07So which is kind of crazy to me because I mean I'm still just like taking it in and figuring out like soccer doesn't report back till July 8th and they start August.
SPEAKER_04Right. And basketball doesn't start their first game till November. Yeah. I think the different timings and schedules and what certain teams like the fact that, like to me, it's very strange that a coach essentially doesn't have access to practice with their team, like volleyball. And they're about to start season. Right.
SPEAKER_07Yeah.
SPEAKER_04And they have a new roster.
SPEAKER_07Well, we came, um, we couldn't call them until the end of July. So we had two, maybe three weeks, and then we were playing. So we had practice, we didn't have rules. We probably did, but they were more lenient. Yeah. But we practiced three times a day. Yeah, just trying to get ready.
SPEAKER_01I mean, I I think there was always that hope as a coach when I coach for a bit, and even um as a player, like, are they gonna come back in shape? That's the big guess. So, like our. Yeah, yeah. And so and so you had the running test when you got back. So you had to make sure we had a running test. Did you have a running test?
SPEAKER_07Yeah, we had we had to pass two of three. Okay.
SPEAKER_04Do you remember what they were?
SPEAKER_07Um, one was I I don't know if you call it shuttles or like suicide type run. You had to do so many in a certain amount. It's more like the Bronco test now. I don't know if you had a bronco test. And then we had to run a mile and under 630 and the beat test.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, we had a mile run. We had to, we had different based on your position, you had to be a little bit more.
SPEAKER_01Ours was eight hundred and twenty-yard shuttles. Yeah. Yep, in 26 seconds.
SPEAKER_04That doesn't sound that hard.
SPEAKER_0110 back, 20 back, 30 back, and then you had 52 seconds break. Because it was like the recovery time. Yeah, it was the recovery time, and then you had to do it again.
SPEAKER_07And no offense, but baseball and softball is not like I mean, you have to have the endurance in your sport, but the running side of things.
SPEAKER_08Zero offense take it.
SPEAKER_07Like Lee Parker's always like, I mean, soccer running compared to my softball running, the cut the kids get mad when you say go run to the foul pall and back. She's like, What?
SPEAKER_04Right, right. Yeah, I don't mean offense by that, but also sometimes whenever like uh like repeat, like repeats like that sound easier until you go out there and you do it. And you get that short break and you gotta be right back. I'm like, man, a mile and ours was either in six or six thirty too for point guards. And so I did take a lot of um um the it's not pride. Uh I got excited, just purpose. It felt like I was purposeful because I was a walk-on, so I had to find ways to be like, okay, this I matter to this team. Um, but I helped one of my teammates, like I created our workouts for the summer to get to where she could complete that the first go. Yeah, you know, and I got super excited for like I finished mine and then I turned around and I was like, let's go. Like, but she put in the work with me. So it was like super exciting whenever she passed that. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01The standard has definitely been raised. I mean, in regards to offseason because um, especially with the the bigger sports because of payment. Yeah, it's like you are expected to do this. This is your job, and um, and with the turnover of rosters, like you cannot give days away if you want to stay on this roster. So it is much higher.
SPEAKER_04Do you think they see it separate? Like, I feel like in my brain, I kinda like how we do, you know, uh summer, fall, winter, spring, like you kind of are taught to kind of segment parts of your life or like seasons, but do you think athletes even think about this as like is it all becoming just one thing versus like times of the year, like, oh, this is off season. This is is it just all this is just our work?
SPEAKER_01You can do different things at different parts of the year. So they see it from that standpoint of like, yes, it is a different season, but it's all work going into it's just a different type of work. Type of work, yeah. Yeah. Than it would be maybe in the middle of the season type work or in the fall work.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and that's a good point that they probably get less rest. That's kind of obvious. But I mean, like, we would get like a whole month or six weeks or something before we had to report back, and you'd still want to come back in shape, obviously, but you didn't have that like two weeks and then we gotta get back to work. Yeah, you know.
SPEAKER_07That's that's what money will do, I guess. Um I mean, I felt like it was a job when we were here. I can only imagine how they feel. Yeah. Like, I mean, because we got school paid for, but like we didn't get paid, paid. Right.
SPEAKER_04Like it's crazy, huh? Yeah. Why is the off-season so valuable?
SPEAKER_01I mean, your body needs a break. You can't keep that intensity up the whole time. You need to rest mentally just as much as physically. And um, and then you need to learn. You have a time to have a break to learn and to grow.
SPEAKER_04It is nice to have a separate part of the year too to uh hone in on like skill versus like having to like focus on your opponent and strategy and execution, maybe.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and sometimes it's for like you're trying to grow a different skill. So specifically, when I would go to summer baseball after my first year, they were like, Hey, your changeup's really good. When you would want to throw a changeup, you need to throw a curveball. Well, like throw a breaking ball. You need to come back in the fall with a third pitch. And so I got hit quite a bit in the summer, but I learned and let came back with a breaking ball. So it was like we don't care about your stats.
SPEAKER_04We're like fact. Go work on this, create this pitch and come back and so you had a place kind of cra um like created in your in your season to fail, but it was okay. Yes, because it was for a purpose. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01And so sometimes you can go and get that kind of experience. Sometimes you need to go and you just need to go pitch. Yeah, you know, for us, or go hit, get the reps. For me, it was coming back, but there's some specific specific things sometimes that you need to go work on. Um, and that's what you can do in the summer in the breaks. Basketball guys work on certain skills, work on certain things. Um, you fill in the blank. I'm sure every sport has something. So they need the coaches, coaches gave you your um your spring exit meeting or you know, fall exit meeting, and they're like, hey, we need you better in these spots. Yeah. So work on these things.
SPEAKER_04So what is besides like conditioning and fitness, what is something that somebody's gonna focus on when they go home for soccer, like to be prepared to come back? Are there certain like skills you'd work on then too?
SPEAKER_07Yeah, I mean your touch or passes just kind of depending on like what Justin said. What can you do?
SPEAKER_04Can you do that independently or you gotta have somebody else?
SPEAKER_07Um yeah, if you have like resources and stuff, you can like different little things. I don't know what they're called, but like yeah, like a kickback type thing where you can kick it to and it comes back. But I mean, you can work on touch without any of that if you have a ball.
SPEAKER_04Right. So yeah, that's one thing that I'm quickly learning as our kids are just like exploring different sports. It's like especially baseball and softball. I'm like, gosh, how do you get better at this if you because if I want to go work on my shot, I just go out to my basket, I just need my basketball and my hoop. Like, you know, but I don't it would be nice if you had somebody to rebound, but you don't have to have that, or I like to run. It's like all right, put your shoes on.
SPEAKER_07Right.
SPEAKER_04But for some of these other sports, realizing really to get better you need another person.
SPEAKER_07I mean, I think it would probably be better if you had another person to work footwork and stuff like that, the more advanced things, I guess.
SPEAKER_04Right. That's hard. Um, so kind of as we kind of get to a point of um ending this conversation, uh, we'll just translate this to just spiritual life. So, what does off-season look like? Maybe is there even really an off-season? Does it feel like there or is it just kind of one thing that you continue to work on? Have you seen that at all, maybe in your life where it's like things change throughout the year? With our job, I do feel like during the summer is nice because it is a downtime, normally from the end of May through June until about now, because most of the athletes start coming back in July for an opportunity to evaluate. I know with FCA we do have like staff evaluations, so you can get time to reflect um and maybe see the areas like you desire to grow in and be intentional about that, like picking resources or things like that.
SPEAKER_01Um, just things, you know, way you've served a team in the past, what areas can you grow in, get in time with coaches. That's always a different time because most of the time in the past at least, they would be more free in the summer. Right. Maybe not now. Um, so we have to adjust with that, which is always a new change. But um it is less busy, so there is more time to maybe w meet and chat with other people that have more time, for instance, distract coaches and others.
SPEAKER_04I just wonder with people with jobs that like our jobs on a college calendar. So it is getting busier with the we don't maybe have the same type of breaks because there is so much more like demand and people are here more often um than in the past. But I'm just wondering about people that have jobs that aren't based on that. Yeah, do they just feel that do they have do they create that downtime? Yeah. Um, or quote unquote off season? Or, you know, I don't know how Brett's job, I mean, he's on a school calendar too, but it's like, do you notice like um time frames that are slower, or is it just kind of like all I mean, there are little pockets of time that are slower, but yeah.
SPEAKER_07I mean, if you were just a teacher or just like maybe a position coach, it wouldn't be You would have more time. I guess too. But like in the real world, I don't know how people do that.
SPEAKER_02I don't know.
SPEAKER_07Like if they just say, like, this week is my week, right? And I'm taking off. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01It was dictated by kids. Yeah. So like we're going on this vacation at this summertime. Like right here.
SPEAKER_04I think something spiritually that might be a little bit easier to relate to the off season would be more so um in like formation and development. Like I think there's certain ages where you're just you want to be walking in your full purpose, like your full thing, like fullness of what you desire to do. But you're really in a season maybe where you're having to be shaped and formed unto that. And that to me feels a little bit more like that offseason feel of I'm putting in work behind the scenes. Nobody's gonna see this. I mean, now they do on Instagram, but you know, but um, you know, because I I think that's the challenge anytime for me, whenever I played sports or whenever I've been in life where it's been like you really I just I've felt convicted I need to focus on a particular area of growth. It's like I know that this is good, but there's nothing really to show for it. And so that can be, I think, frustrating. I but that was kind of my question earlier. Why I had the question of like, do people just see it all as one thing now? So maybe that's not mentally as like much of a hurdle, is like this is just part of the work. It's not like, oh, I'm doing all these unseen things and you know, I don't know if that mindset had shifted. But like I felt like that as an athlete for sure. It's like you can go to conditioning and weights, and you're like, oh, this is so like not flashy, not fun. But then, you know, it's gonna be tested whenever the season comes. Yeah. So it's worth it. But it's kind of hard to convince yourself of that some of those days because it just feels like the same thing over and over and over. Um, but anyways, are there times in your life that you remember feeling that way of wow, I'm really I'd rather be, you know, leading in a particular way or being out front in a particular way, but I'm just being shaped and formed behind the scenes and I'm gonna have to like submit to that.
SPEAKER_01I mean, I remember working in a golf course and sitting on a fairway mower and just cutting fairways because that's my major was golf and sports turf grass management. I needed to get internships. Yeah. And I could have been pitching over the summer, but I felt like that's what I was supposed to do. So I just did that, dove into that world um for a summer. You know, a couple summers. So I I don't know, that's probably one of those spaces of like I need to do this because I think more of it too student athlete, that's what it was more than it is now.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_01It's just not that anymore, unfortunately. And so it was about what am I gonna do this summer that I need to do as a student to prepare me before I get back into classes or to develop me or form me in some way. So I thought I guess more of those things were put out there maybe on my mind of like formation of who I am, maybe over the summer instead of just sport.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and there's been times where you've like been in job transitions where you've worked like at Home Depot or different places where it's like that's not ultimately what you would be doing forever, but it was a space where you could be shaped and formed, and some of those things be challenged. Like, I don't know if you felt that way when you did those things, but it's like, what am I doing here? Oh yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01But then part of me liked hiding.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, just doing something like that. Yeah, I don't have to answer questions, I can just like help customers, stock shelves.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. And some of these guys, you know, Bryce Chance is a legend here. You know, Bryce is gonna, you know, hopefully somebody gives him a time a chance to play at my early ball. But like I'm assuming if Bryce ever comes back to Starkville and just to work or do something, like, man, how's Bryce just gonna be able to be Bryce? Yeah, I don't know. And maybe that will come with time. Yeah. Um or Mangum, like Mangum gets dumb and comes back to Starkville and just yeah, has a job.
SPEAKER_04There's several of your teammates that are in Starkville. Yeah, we're old now, so everybody's not we weren't as big a deal as these other guys are now, so um but I do think there's opportunities in that, in those seasons, whether it's like a season of life or um in a job transition, something like that, where you do have these opportunities to work on things that if you were busy or you know, in the thing that you want to do for the rest of your life, that you have it's not pointless. Like I, you know, and I have um we both we have a mutual friend who was on staff with us at University of Texas, and she resigned from FCA at UT, and then she was like planning to go into her next whatever that was, you know. She was like, Okay, yeah, I can get a job and do something else. And it was not a clear path out. And she um took a job at Walmart, and that was a really forming season for her of and she wrote a book actually called Isle 29 of what she learned, like working the makeup aisle, um, and just about like waiting. And there's another book I was gonna mention, and I can link these in the show notes, but it's called Anonymous, and it's about like the hidden years, you know, we see of Jesus, like we see him at 33 on, like public ministry. But what happened in 33 years, a lot of people don't like just notice or or talk about or think about that's 33 years of just hiddenness of what was being developed in him before he started doing all these things that were getting attention. And so uh, anyways, it's just good to take, just like in sports, you know, you have fundamentals and you have time where you can focus on an on fine-tuning things before you get into the challenges of the season. Um, and hopefully people can find a way to kind of have if you don't have like an off-season that you can kind of create it for yourself.
SPEAKER_01I mean, that's the encouragement of the college student out there. Like take a break, um, go on walks, find new, just get formation in different ways. Take a break from what you usually have. Um, it's important. And and then you can mix your sport into all those things. There's always time for that development piece, but um, take advantage of it now because in your future, um, if you're fortunate enough to go pro and keep playing some, that's awesome. Um, but that's short, and you got to do something else, yeah, you know, and you're just not gonna get those those times, those breaks to kind of develop and you know, how am I being formed and evaluate? Um, so take advantage of those summers.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and the this verse um in James is probably familiar to a lot of people, but James 1, 2 through 4 says, Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow for when your endurance is fully developed. You will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. And so I think that I mean, I don't know, it might be cliche to say the off-season's the most significant or important part of the season because it prepares you, but it really, it really is. Yeah. Because I mean, I'm already thinking about teams with new rosters, and I know just being an observer, once you get into the season and you get tested, like what is gonna come out and what's gonna come out, not just physically, but emotionally and all of that. And that's that's really determined by what is put in during this time of the year. And I would say if I was an athlete, that would be the the biggest challenge is to be able to go in when we're not performing in front of a lot of people to have the mindset that actually behind the scenes, like this is the most important time. For sure. Um, it'd be interesting to hear from some of them if that's a challenge or if that's just like that they get it. I don't know.
SPEAKER_01Because you can't just show up in the moment and get it. Right. Like it's gotta be formed before you get to the moment. Right. You just don't flip a coin and get lucky.
SPEAKER_04Right. And there's teams that do that somehow really well. Because there are teams that can get to maybe a postseason, but then they get stuck at that game. They can't get over the hump of whatever that is. Maybe in baseball it's the regionals. I don't know. But it's like they can get there, but they can't progress past that point. And there's something, there's something there, you know, that other teams can be able to do that.
SPEAKER_01Finish a season strong or like, you know, whatever it may be.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, a breaking point maybe that they haven't been able to figure out. So anyway, okay, well, the uh I I ended the past few episodes with some like reflection questions of sorts. And so this one for today is what are you doing today that your future self will thank you for? And I actually have an answer for myself on this one. My body feels terrible when I run right now, speaking of running. Yeah, but this is what I tell myself whenever I'm running. I'm like, your December self will thank you. You will be in a much better position by the end of the year. So just get over it. Um, but anyway, that's a question you can think about. What are you doing today that your future self will thank you for? And feel free to remind yourself of that um whenever you're doing things, especially things you don't want to do. You're like, I'm gonna do it anyway. Um, any parting shots before we wrap up?
SPEAKER_01I mean, with that question, I'd probably say seeking to understand my children well and how they operate, I think my future dad self is definitely going to thank you for that. Yeah. Um, and the kids will probably as well.
SPEAKER_03So yeah, that's good. Steep, Justin.
SPEAKER_01Thanks. I'd probably need to run too for my future self.
SPEAKER_05What about you, Brandy? Anything?
SPEAKER_07Oh no, I can relate to both of those. Um, with your running, you say your December self. I'm like my 60 and 70 year old self. Right.
SPEAKER_04No, but for real.
SPEAKER_07I want to be able to play with my grandkids.
SPEAKER_04I want to be able to play with Ben.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Yeah. He's like, he's four, and he like, he's like, we're gonna play baseball, then basketball, then football. And I'm like, it's nine o'clock at night. Yeah, it's like he's like still ramping up, and we're like, we're going to bed.
SPEAKER_04Um, but I do I do think about that though. I'm like, I will figure this out because I wanna, yeah, same thing. I do want to be able to be active for Ben. Yeah, but all of our kids, but he's the one that's like the most active. But then also like for yeah, being in that position to ungrank.
SPEAKER_07I think maybe to add to that too, um, is Brett and I have been trying to like once every couple of weeks go out to eat just us or go we've been going for walks, stuff like that. We never did that when the kids were little. I probably put them above him too much, but I feel like there were so many of them and they were so young, and I stayed at home, so like they really needed me. Um, but I think my future self definitely will thank me when they're all out of the house and we're like staring at each other. I think about that too. Like, well, what do we do now? Right. And that's what I keep telling him. Like, when Drake he can he can retire, I think, the year before Drake graduates. But I'm like, when Drake graduates, you're retiring, and we're going on adventures. Like that's what also keeping myself in shape and fit. I want to be able to go and do things, explore just because we never have been able to.
SPEAKER_04So yeah, I was talking to a friend yesterday who was here at state with us at the same time. Um he walked on the football team, and so he was a good friend. Like I met him pretty early on, which was great. We're like walk-ons, we can encourage each other. Um, but we were talking about exercise yesterday on the phone, and it was like, yeah, it just looks different now, but like we're, you know, maybe not quite as intense, but still like trying to put um, you know, invest in that area of our life so that we can do the things that we want to do. But yeah, I say December because um potentially there's a half marathon that somebody else has mentioned to me that I'm like, okay, well, at least if I like run a little bit throughout the week. Like I'll just see if I can get there. Yeah. So we shall see. But anyway, this has been a good conversation. I hope it's encouraged somebody out there today. We always appreciate you listening. So come back next week and we'll just continue on. We're gonna keep talking about off season um and a few different angles about that over the next few weeks. So we look forward to those conversations. Thanks for listening to the Created to Be Podcast. To learn more about Mississippi State FCA, visit www.msufca.org and follow us on Instagram at Hale State FCA underscore. And check out our new Instagram for podcast content at Created to Be Podcast. If you would like to become a financial partner, visit www.fca.orgslash donate to sew into the work God is doing through FCA at Mississippi State.