Moving outside proved to be a good thing and a challenge.  I enjoyed being outdoors, especially when the weather was pleasant.  We also had more options for locations to play.  We used the local high school tennis courts most often for the group lessons.  The challenges came mostly with the weather.  That summer was hot and dry.  I recall playing for two hours one evening, ending at 9:30pm, and it was still 100 degrees outside!

As the lessons progressed, so did I.  I could tell that my body was starting to “get” it.  No longer falling down, but wobbling occasionally – especially when we began learning how to serve.  You know the vertigo you get when at the top of a tall building looking out the windows at the city below you?  That is just how I felt when tossing the ball into the air for a serve.  Looking up at it and tracking it caused a little vertigo and even a little nausea.  I had a long way to go if I was ever going to be able to play with some level of competence!

The group lesson was scheduled just once a week and each week saw minimal progress.  I knew I needed to get out there more often but I wasn’t sure how to get the time to make that happen.  Then, my daughter came home from summer vacation and expressed some interest in playing tennis!  More on this development in my next post.

Had I known what the last 18 months would have been like for me, I would have started writing about my experience sooner.  As the saying goes, “Hindsight is 20/20.”

Back in February 2012, I was invited to join a group of women in their 40′s who had decided to take up tennis.  Some had never played before in their lives (me!) and others had played in their high school days or intermittently over the last couple of decades.  We were fortunate to find an instructor who was patient with us  not only as we heaved balls all over the courts but also as we used the time to catch up a bit socially.

The first few lessons were indoors and I was extremely tentative and nervous – I have never been known to be in the least bit athletic or coordinated.  In fact, as we lined up for a drill (everyone else was behind me!), the first ball fed to me led to my collapse on the court.  No – the ball did not hit me, nor did anything else.  I just keeled over like one of those fainting goats that you see on YouTube.

As time went on, I fell less and hit the ball more.  Then summer time hit and we moved outdoors!  Stayed tuned for more on my tennis journey!