Bob Gansler, the former US World Cup coach, now a staff instructor with the NSCAA, says, "Coaches are Teachers in short pants."  He may be right except Bob obviously hasn't coached in the Pacific Northwest in the middle of winter.  But I think we all have to agree that coaches are teachers.

We all get bombarded with Email these days, but I am going to refer you to a newsletter that is well worth subscribing to.  The organization is called Simple Truths.  I've mentioned before Sport Coaching Brain (out of Australia - www.sportcoachingbrain.com ) with lots of good stuff for the coach. 

Simple Truths founder, Mac Anderson, talks about the influence of teachers that he experienced - two in particular.  And then links us to a presentation - a poem - written by Paula Fox.

So whether you are a hard-bitten pro team coach with 30-years of experience or a coach of 5-year olds there is a message here.  Enjoy!

Dear Tony,

For a long time I've wanted to publish a book about how teachers made a difference in the lives of their students; because I know they made a difference in mine!

I grew up in Trenton, Tennessee, a small town of 5,000 people. I have wonderful memories of those first 18 years. And during those years there were two teachers who I can say, with certainty, helped to make me who I am today.

The first was Ms. Bridges who taught me in the 4th grade. She was amazing! I'll never forget her beautiful smile and her passion for teaching. She made learning so much fun and made all of us feel like we could do anything we wanted to do. The positive seeds she planted in my head are still growing!

Then there was Fred Culp, my history teacher in high school. To this day, he is still the funniest person I've ever met. In addition to loving his history class, he taught me that a sense of humor, especially laughing at yourself, can be one of life's greatest blessings.

So if you're a teacher, or if, like me, your life was greatly influenced by a teacher, you're going to love this movie! The beautiful poem, The Heart of a Teacher, was written by Paula Fox. The combination of words, music and photographs is a "wow" that you won't soon forget!

So to honor any teacher in your life who has made a difference, don't forget to forward this to everyone you know. Just click here to watch!

To Life,