Thinking about how differently girls' athletics are treated these days in my high school alma mater than they were back in my day, back in my siblings' day, got me wondering how differently my sister's experience in high school would be if she were attending ANC now instead of back in the late 1950s, early 1960s.
See, Mim was a terrific athlete. Mike loved to tell the story of how he'd bust with pride watching the girls play softball, seeing the outfield move way back when Mim came up to bat. She was an all-'rounder at sports. Gosh, she even coached her own "little league" football team!
But she lived in a day when the girls were only allowed to play for exercise & enjoyment. Even in my day, eight years later, we were restricted to intramural events, playing against the other classes instead of against other schools. The only way girls got close to a playing field was as a cheerleader - and Mim most definitely did not see herself as a cheerleader sort.
Oh, if she could have played against other schools! Mim would have been one of the school's most recognized female athletes. Maybe it wouldn't have changed her low opinion of herself, but maybe it would. Instead, the "girls can't" attitude of way back then just reinforced that she was super talented, but... That mega negating "but" that diminished so many great female athletes, held them back & kept them off the radar of most of the community, let alone off the sports pages, out of the columns that regularly carried stories of the BOYS exploits & victories.
What if? If only? Glad today's girls (& their sisters) will never have to wonder.
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