Table of Contents

Introduction

The poem Taking One for the Team written by Sara Holbrook is about teamwork and remaining united. The poem gives the message of always supporting each other even though we may suffer defeat sometimes. In the poem, the poet says that she had her friends had practised well, but in the game, they scored less than the opponents yet they are not angry with each other.

The poem has been divided into two stanzas having nine lines each. We will discuss the poem in detail along with the meanings of difficult words.

Poem

Stanza 1

We practiced together,
sweat and stained.
We pummeled each other
and laughed off pain.
Teams may disagree,
may tease,
may blame.
Teams may bicker and whine,
but get down for the game.

In the first stanza, the poet says that she and her friends practiced together. They sweat and stained i.e. left no stone unturned to make themselves prepared for the upcoming match. They pummeled (i.e. did jokes, pats, etc) each other and this way they were able to laugh off (overcome) the pain (which they might have undergone due to over-work).

In the next line, the poet says that there may be instances when the team members disagree on some matters. They may tease or even blame each other, they may bicker i.e. argue on small matters or even whine complain, but in the end, when it is time to play, they get down for the game i.e. become a team and play with full energy.

Stanza 2

You had my back.
We fought the fight.
And though our score
was less last night,
we're walking tall.
Our team came through
and stuck together like Crazy Glue.
I'm proud to say
I lost with you.

In the second stanza, the poet describes an event. She tells her team that she is always with them no matter what the circumstances are. According to her, they fought the fight i.e. played the game and even though their score was less than that of opposite team in the game which they played the last night, they are still walking tall i.e. with full pride.

The whole team remained united even after defeat (there were no arguments) and they were stuck with each other like crazy glue. In the end, the poet says that she is proud to say that she lost the game with her team.

Crazy glue is symbolic and probably refers to the bond which is quite strong among the team members. The last line seems to be ironic. However, it gives the message of unity in all thicks and thins.

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