Dear God, help me to be a good sport in this game of life because it’s definitely not easy.

Let me make you aware of one thing. I don’t ask for an easy place in the line-up – it’s OK, you can put me anywhere you need me. I only ask that I will be able to give you 100 per cent of everything I have.

Dear God, if all the hard times seem to come my way, I actually thank you for the compliment. Just help me to remember that you never send a player more trouble than he can handle.

Lord, help me to accept those miserable bad breaks as part of the game, no matter what the others do. Help me to study the “book” so I’ll know the rules.

Dear God, if the natural turn of events goes against me and I am benched for sickness or old age, be a “sport” yourself and help me accept that as part of the game too. Please help me from whimpering and all that jargon that I was framed or that I got a raw deal.

And when eventually I finish the final innings, honest, I want no laurels. All I really really want is to believe in my heart that I played as well as I could – and that, no, I didn’t let “you” down.

Valerie Borg

Valletta