Acknowledge me!

My oldest son was struggling with improving his soccer skills and couldn't quite get his coach to help him out. He practiced hard, he cleaned up the equipment, he was nice to his fellow players, he never missed a practice, yet he still didn't get the playing time he deserved. Finally, my husband and my son had a meeting with the coach. The conclusion of the meeting was that he was a nice kid, didn't ask for much and the coach forgot to acknowledge his efforts, or his communication efforts. I find that boys of all ages, including men, have the need and must be acknowledged in everything they do. Whether it be with their jobs, their sports, their relationships or their abilities, men need to be acknowledged. I have to say it applies to both good and bad acknowledgements. They deserve the credit when due, and they appreciate constructive criticism when done correctly. Even as a small baby learning to crawl they need mom and dad to clap their hands, or a small boy saying ten times a day, "Watch me!," or a young man building a tree house with dad, they crave acknowledgement. Men have preformed for woman in the early days with fighting, building, creating, growing and mating in order to get acknowledged by the opposite sex. And, the key to acknowledgements is that it directly leads to respect in a man's eyes. Mothers, Grandmothers, sisters and girlfriends will only succeed in their relationships with boys and men if they succeed in the right acknowledgements for the right thing at the right time.