Looking Out My Back Window #110

Originally posted on Facebook HERE

We have several back windows in our house. Took today’s photo from upstairs during the morning fog. Such a cool, peaceful time of the day. After about a ten year hiatus, I went golfing yesterday. My grandson Ben asked me if I’d go golfing with him, so how could I say no? My father was really into golfing and got me started when I was very little, so I’ve been golfing since I was about five years old. Just not in the last ten years at all. So we found a nice par 3 course, got his dad to come with us and set a date. Decided to try the driving range first, so buckets of balls were purchased and we started whacking away. Well, needless to say I was a little rusty. Golf is so much in your head. So much to think about – keep your left arm straight, follow through, keep your eye on the ball, etc… every club length is different. When I was playing a lot, a lot of this became second nature. I didn’t have to think about it so much, I could just play. Not yesterday, especially at first. Took me a while to get myself calm, practice the shot, see it before I hit it. And therein lies some of the magic. You have to see the shot before you take the shot. You have to believe it’ll go well. If you don’t, it won’t. Almost every time. A couple times I stepped up to hit and I knew I wasn’t ready mentally. I should have stepped back, taken a couple more swings, gotten calm. But each time I just took the shot and it never went well. Other times I just “knew” before I hit it that it would go well. Every time it did. And, every now and then I knew the instant I took a shot that I had made a mistake (usually taking my eye off the ball). How can I know the instant I make the mistake, but not the instant before? Got me thinking a lot about golf as an analogy for life. The “hole” in the game of life is to become the best version of ourselves that we can possibly be. Some of us won’t even tee off. Others won’t take it seriously – in the golf world, they’d be called “hackers”. Some will be somewhat serious, but won’t work at it very hard. And others will dedicate their lives to being the best they can be. If you want to be the best version of yourself that you can be, you need to see it first, and believe it for yourself. Then get in the game, and do the work. Because believing a shot can go well, but never taking it, won’t get you anywhere. Sometimes imagination is more important that knowledge (Einstein), and you’ll always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take (Gretzky). Life is about being the best versions of ourselves that we can possibly be. What does that mean to you? Spend some time thinking about it today, then get in the game and move forward believing it for yourself. If you’d like a great example of how this works in real life, watch the movie The Dawn Wall. It’s incredible. Then try telling me why you can’t do whatever it is you know your heart yearns for. Don’t let fear derail your path to being the best you possible. See it. Believe it. Get in there and do it.