My husband and I have a prenup. No, not because one of us came into the marriage with greater wealth than the other, but because I want to win. Not only do I want to win, I want you to lose. I believe in running up the score, preserving a shut-out, bunting for a base hit to break up a no-no. I believe that no lead is safe until the final out, the clock reads 0.0, or everyone is in the clubhouse. I want to win. So, my husband and I have a prenup: I agreed to watch all of our children’s games from the trunk of the car and he agreed to marry me. Anyone with children already knows that I am in breach of contract. There’s no way around it. But I have an even bigger problem and that is the current thinking in children’s organized sports: Build self-esteem, good sportsmanship, and a desire to play though not keeping score, maintaining standings or developing skilled-position players. What?!? Are you fucking kidding me? Who does that? Who wants to play a game they can’t win? Never mind that you’re building a false sense of self. Children keep score. They know when they’ve won or lost and they don’t buy the “we’re all winners” bullshit. They have an innate sense of competition. Good sportsmanship is fostered when children have the opportunity to learn how to win and how to lose. And some kids just don’t wanna pitch…or get out of goal for that matter. Last night, my daughter played in her U10 soccer match. Without getting bogged down in the dreary details of suburban life, her team is phenomenal. She is not the best player on the team, but she doesn’t hurt the team either. I’m good with that, but the killer in me would just like to see the killer in her. To see her not apologize when she kicks someone, to see her run all out, to see her learn the strategy of the game and play with that in mind. I want to see her want to win and you to lose. In the fourth quarter, her coaches put her in as a defender. Kicking with all her U10 might she cleared ball after ball. She maintained her field with precision. On a corner kick, she got in goal and booted the shot right over everyone’s head. She ran off the pitch after her match, eyes bright, grinning ear to ear. “ I told Coach I wanted to play defender and he asked,’Why?’ and I said, “Because I love it and I’m good.” A killer is born. (I hope her husband gets a prenup!)