Curb ball is a pretty big deal for children who live in Parkside. It’s a game that seems simple, but it’s harder than it looks. To win the game, you have stand on one side of the street and throw a basketball aiming to hit the curb on the opposite side (your opponent’s side) of the street, and the person to reach a certain amount of points wins the game. I had never heard of this game before working here, so I had to ask someone to teach me. After learning how to play with the children, I saw just how fun it could be.
Curb ball is such a big deal that Friends of Parkside decided to start hosting an annual curb ball tournament every year. Last year was the first year and a really good one, so I had a reputation to uphold. We passed out flyers several times throughout the neighborhood, made phone calls, and I always encouraged children to come whenever I saw them. Weeks had gone by and only 17 children had signed up. I wanted more children to participate. The day of, there were about 30 children who showed up to play and I didn’t expect that at all – I was satisfied.
The children were so competitive and excited to play that it made me excited. The older children in the 10-17 year-old group were quite impressive. They were doing tricks and throwing what they call “bullets” and I was just blown away at how good they were. Most of them were rather confident and boasted about how they would win first place. I was just happy to see these children, including some whom I’ve never seen before, come together and have fun for this event. I remember being anxious about when my project would finally come into play, and now that it has come and it’s over, I get to say that I’ve seen something all the way through. Being that this job isn’t in the slightest sense easy, I feel good!
