Our day began with an early visit to the Minnetonka Landscape Arboreutm with Mark and Marie. There we were greeted with the above pictured “YouBetcha” Stick Sculpture by Patrick Dougherty. Made of tree saplings woven together, the installation is just as fun to wander through as it is to look at. Later we met Brook, Mario’s girlfriend, at a hurling tournament in which he was competing.

Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin. The objective of the game is for players to use a wooden stick called a hurley to hit a small ball between the opponents’ goalposts either over the crossbar for one point, or under the crossbar into a net guarded by a goalkeeper for three points. The ball can be caught in the hand and carried for not more than four steps, struck in the air, or struck on the ground with the hurley. It can be kicked, or slapped with an open hand (the hand pass) for short-range passing. A player who wants to carry the ball for more than four steps has to bounce or balance the ball on the end of the stick, and the ball can only be handled twice while in the player’s possession.

Next, it was on to watch my other nephew, Rory, compete in a soccer match on the other side of town. Like his uncle, he plays the wing midfield position. Unlike his uncle, he runs like the wind and never seems to tire.