Sports can teach youngsters how to get along and become team players

Some people might not think that sports has anything to do with good morals. I beg to differ. Our youth can learn a lot about how to live from participating in sports.

For example, sports can teach a child a lot about how to get along with others; how to be compassionate and considerate and how to be good sportsmen and women. It teaches how to be a team player and how to let go of your ego. Good sportsmanship teaches the Golden Rule of treating others the way you want to be treated.

Sports is a good thing for youngsters who need a parental figure to help guide them. My great-grandson Jaylen Hines, 10, is an example. Since being exposed to sports and the positive-minded men and women who coach him, Jaylen has become a passionate young track performer and is now ranked No. 1 in the nation in the 4 x4 relay and No. 8 in the nation in his age group in the 800 and 1,500 meter run.

Coach Darius (Coach “D”) Lawshea said proudly, “Our club — the Miami Gardens Xpress Club — is made up of many talented young runners.”

To name a few:

▪ Tyrese Cooper, 17, is ranked the No. 1 runner under 18 in the world in the 200 and 400 meters. He is in Peru this week representing the United States World Junior Team in the 200 meters and the 4 x 4 relay.

▪ Cha-iel Johnson, 12, is No. 1 in the U.S. in her age group in the 400, 800 and 1500 meters.

▪ Dominick Grullon, 12, is ranked No. 1 in his age group in the 400 meters.

▪ Jaleel Gelin, 12, is ranked No. 1 in the country in his age group in the 800 and 1,500 meters.

“We just competed in the ESPN Wide World of Sports at Disney World in Orlando, and became the No. 1 AAU Club in the nation, out of 314 clubs competing,” Coach “D” said.

Jaylen and the other members of the team will travel to Detroit for the Junior Olympics, which starts Aug. 1. The team will leave next week, so please pray for the Miami Gardens Xpress Club to have safe travel and to bring back the gold.

For more information, please contact Coach “D” at 786-0367-7209.

‘Are women equal or superior to men?’

A public fireside discussion, hosted by the Baha’is of Miami, will be at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Miami Baha’i Center, 9300 S. Dixie Hwy., Suite 209. The discussion will be on the question, “Are Women Equal or Superior to Men?”

The discussion will be led by Thomas Carsey, who said in a press release, “This is not a new question. Any list of significant rulers, artists, scientists, poets, explorers, and the like in history will include only a small number of women. Is this because they were inherently less qualified than men?”

“In the present day, the movement towards equality of women and men has become a driving force around the world,” Carsey said. “How can we understand this profound change in attitude? How does promoting the education of girls contribute? What do the teachings of the world’s religions have to say about this question?”

Carsey said the women’s movements in the United States and in Islam have many parallels. For example, the first American women’s rights convention, the Seneca Falls convention, was held in July 1848 in New York. At almost the same time, at the Conference of Badasht in Iran, the well-known poetess Ta’hirih (AKA Fatimah Baraghani) proclaimed the symbolic abrogation of Shariah law. Both events prefigured far-reaching but similar changes in the fortunes of women in the two cultures, and thus have significance that still affects the world today, Carsey said.

The discussion will seek to answer the question of what the establishment of the equality of women and men would mean for American culture. The event is open to everyone.

Also, the center will host a community devotional gathering at 10:30 a.m. on July 30. There is no admission charge or a solicitation of funds. For more information, call 305-915-7247 or go to the website, www.MiamiBahai.org.

‘Boldly Living in Grace’

At 10 a.m. Sunday, the Rev. Charles Taylor, senior pastor at The Universal Truth Center for Better Living, will continue his teaching on “Boldly Living in Grace,” with the sermon topic: “Grace Turns a Minus into a Plus.” The sermon, fourth in the series, is geared to guide parishioners on how, with grace, any negative thought, feeling or experience can be turned into something positive and uplifting.

The lesson will continue the following Sunday, July 30, with the sermon title, “Grace is Letting Life Love You.” Everyone is invited. The Universal Truth Center for Better Living is at 21310 NW 37th Ave. in Miami Gardens.

Table Rummage Bonanza

It’s almost bonanza time at Temple Beth Tov Ahavat Shalom, 6438 SW Eighth St. in West Miami, where Sisterhood at members are having a Table Rummage Bonanza from noon to 4 p.m. on Aug. 20.

The cost is $10 per table. You may place on it whatever you want to sell, except food products, and you can keep the profits.

To participate, you must reserve your table by Aug. 6. Set up time is from 11 a.m. to noon.

Call 305-278-8150, or email charbbk@bellsouth.net to reserve your table.

This story was originally published July 18, 2017 at 4:46 PM with the headline "Sports can teach youngsters how to get along and become team players."