Yumi's face fell as Maria explained her aversion to sports.

"Oh dear...well that wasn't very kind of them at all." She shook her head sadly.

"If I or my boys were around, we would have invited you to be on our team. Then you could see how much sports can really be. Those other kids just didn't understand the real meaning of sportsmanship."

She smiled warmly, encouragingly "Don't give up on something because of a few bad apples. That's my advice."