“He’s Deadly, He’s Kind”

I wouldn’t call myself a “big poetry guy.” I also wouldn’t try and tell coaches of male athletes to try and engage their young men with poetry via the Hollywood trope of “It’s just rap music on paper guys.” But, I do think @lucassjones puts out hard hitting prose that often grapples with the subjects TeamsOfMen wants you to be talking about with your players.

This poem, this time debating whether men are MOUNTAINS or better described as the tide, is one of those I think is instantly usable. Give a group of 3-4 guys one stanza each. Ask them to “put this in terms you think our team can understand” and then turn them loose with it for 4-5 minutes. Ask them to search for words that accurately describe themselves. Words that DON’T fit who they view themselves as. Tell them to compare the idea that “he’s deadly, he’s kind” and how those two things can be true at the same time. Offer up how you view the idea that “he rains and he cries” and what that might actually mean.

Remember, often in this work there is no RIGHT or WRONG answer. There’s only the journey, the discussion and the space to share with one another.

Coach Prompts

• How often do players get invited to interpret something instead of simply being told what to think?

• What line in the poem would spark the strongest conversation in your team room?

• Are there contradictions in masculinity your players need more space to discuss?

Player Prompts

• Which line in the poem felt most like you? Which one felt least like you?

• Can someone be both strong and soft, dangerous and kind? Why or why not?

• If you rewrote one stanza to describe yourself, what would it say?