I have faith in things bigger than myself. I celebrate the ability of the underdog. I am certain that anything is possible. I have performed things people have told me were impossible. Maybe I am a sucker but I refuse to validate the pessimism that causes losers to shake their heads at those who try. I don't believe that any day is worth living when met with the slightest consideration of inability. To the contrary, you have the opportunity in every new day to change the world! It's pie in the sky stuff and I live it every day.
This last week has been flooded with stories of our sports idols cheating. Prompting "I told you so" rhetoric from those who tried and failed....and even greater eyebrow raising from those who never even tried. Those of us who stood up and cheered the achievements of another only to find out that they were disingenuous can't help but feel cheated. That moment we high fived our son after a home run taken from us....and tomorrow we'll get back to living our lives.
Here's how it really works....YOU and your own judge, jury, and executioner! Regardless of our occupation, we face choices and challenges. All of us want to perform well and we all fail at some point...we own it, our fears subside, and we endure to play another day.
You know those who take short cuts: they are consistently looking over their shoulder, they toss and turn in bed, when challenged to explain their success the story doesn't serve the number. I assure you that a cheater faces a lifetime of moments alone with their guilt far more daunting than our moments of disappointment. Once you cross that line, you can never return to your true glory. You are no longer a father, son, or friend....you have categorized yourself with a scarlet letter that only you have to live with forever.
I live in the Bay Area, we cheered our faces off for Barry Bonds for years. I never gave it two seconds of thought. Until my son was born. Suddenly, I was confronted with the reality of the story I would tell of the nights I spent at the ballpark watching home runs fly into McCovey Cove.
The response was pretty simple: My life has been magically transformed by sports, music, and the love I have for your mother. There is magic in all of it that makes Champions of mere mortals. The only thing that matters is what's behind door #3. My son never talked to Barry Bond but he knows me! The mysticism of our heroes need remain so....Our real heroes leave before we wake up and rip off the tie in time to take us to soccer practice.
The Real Test
We are all judged by the people we work for. It is an indefensible reality of our existence.
The only test that matters passing is the way you feel when you look into your children's eyes at the end of the day. Tis better to build a shack on the reality of effort than to cheat to build your daughter a mansion.
Jobs will come and go and you will get profoundly upset about things that do not matter. I have never seen a gravestone encompassing an insult. Every choice is your own and no job is too important. We all have the ability to dress up our failures, but none of us can fool ourselves.
When the credits run their course we have only ourselves to answer to.
So I will conclude this post as I did my last:
You have 29,200 days on this earth...how have you done so far?
Don't Forget to Remember!
Dave
No comments:
Post a Comment