It was not our most successful state tournament, which kind of hurt after one of our most successful state tournaments last year. It reminded me of the 2009 State Tournament and the possibilities that never came. However, I am so proud of my students and all they accomplished this year. I think they truly enjoyed spending the weekend together, and I enjoyed spending time with them. In a season tainted by one student's anger, my students moved past it to work on their own goals to regroup and find the joy that they find in speech and debate.
I was quite sad on Saturday evening. I am losing three senior boys whose presence has added some frustrations but more often than not lots of laughter to my life. I felt like I had failed one of these students particularly as he is so talented, and I am just not a good enough coach to help him excel. I think I need to work harder as a coach, and I feel bad that I didn't step up this year.
Aside from my students, I truly enjoyed the company of people in the judges' lounge. From other coaches to parents who I have come to know and consider friends, I had plenty of laughs and good stories to share. I honestly don't have any "debatisms" from the weekend, probably because it was state tournament and the absurdity wasn't quite as prevalent.
There are things about state tournament that I find absolutely ridiculous, and while I am horribly tempted to write about them, I will just say that it is what it is. It is a tournament I still want to have a student win so criticisms out the door, it's still the culmination of the season and unfortunately, it's a culmination that always has tears, at least for me.
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