Tennis Anyone?

Since deciding to take a more relaxed approach to the summer season, I seem to have returned to a pastime long lost to adulthood. 

In my younger days, I played tennis.  A lot of tennis. 

I come from a long line of keen tennis players, and was encouraged very early on to pick up a racket and learn the game.  Beyond the benefits of exercise – I was told – tennis has always been a social game that can be enjoyed with a community of friends, family and fellow enthusiasts over the course of an entire lifetime.  And, as if to drive the point home, during summer when I was young, my very elderly grandfather insisted on playing every day at 11 am sharp, often enlisting various grandchildren to join him as partner or opponents.

As I grew up, I took extra lessons, trained for competition, and represented my school on the team.   I could hit hard, control my shots and pretty much hold my own.  Most importantly, I was confident in my game. 

When it came time to go off to university, I got distracted by boys, too much beer, and being cool.  Tennis wasn’t a pursuit of preference among my peers, and playing with my mom and my grandfather had lost its appeal.  Instead of feeling empowered, I felt obligated, and when school was out, I got a job, settled down and got serious.  There was no time for play, and no love left for the game of tennis.

Fast forward (more than) a few years, and my seriously settled life took a twist.  Alone after a painful break up, I found myself nostalgic for the past.  I needed to retrace my steps and rediscover the things I had let go, overlooked or ignored while trying too hard to be someone I wasn’t.  I found myself picking up a racket again.  

I joined a club here in town, and convinced a friend to come with me.  We made it a regular date, once a week after work and Sunday mornings followed by a big breakfast.  The little girlaboutOtown would come along, happily distracted by the playground, and we would sometimes stop afterward for a swim in the club pool.  It was a great way to get outside, to engage in some exercise and to stay connected with a friend.  

We played like this for the summer, but then my friend kept on playing.  She played through the winter, and even hired a coach.  Her passion for tennis came back as swiftly as her skill set, and with regular games, she quickly surpassed my ability.   By last summer, time considerations seemed to overtake again.  My confidence had waned, my motivation disappeared, and my other interests somehow more compelling.   I just didn’t get around to joining the club.

Today?  Time is not so much of an issue, and while I still haven’t joined a club, the fella and I have hit the ball around almost every day it has been sunny.  We’ve found some beautiful public courts down by the Rideau River that are never busy, and slowly, my enthusiasm for the game seems to be coming back.  Far from being a social scene, the public courts provide the space – both real and imagined – for me to hear the swish again and to feel the strength return to my swing. 

While I do still hope to join the club in the future, for now, I am unconstrained by enforced etiquette, round robin ladders, and club rules.  Perhaps this is why tennis has finally turned fun again… 

Who would have guessed my mother may have been right all along? 

For more about tennis in Ottawa, check out the National Capital Tennis Association. 

Click here for a list of private tennis clubs, or here for more about the City of Ottawa’s public courts and recreational tennis programs.

Map via the City of Ottawa.