Our concept of time is messed up to a certain extent. Not the measurement of time. Seconds, minutes, hours, days, etc. are effective units to use for measuring time. It is our relationship with it that may be in need of a revamp. Perhaps I am only speaking for myself but I generally don’t think that I’m so unique to have a completely new thought. Time is something that in our younger years we waste so often it is as if we believe that there is an infinite supply for us. Then as we get older, we lament its passing, wishing that we had some of that wasted time back. It seems that the only people who truly grasp the limited resource which they have are the people who have a brush with their own mortality. There are a multitude of stories including George Lucas, Franck Ribery and so many others who gained clarity from a near death experience.
For me, I was too young. Too young to remember and I never got the lesson. When I was two and a half, I had meningitis. I almost died. Despite knowing this story since I was a kid, it never really sunk in that I was working with borrowed time. At this moment I am forty one years into a lease on a life that easily could have passed by already. So what does one do with this realization, even if it comes extremely late? Like so many things in this world, the first thing is most likely to be grateful. None of us is owed anything in the world. So gratitude for all that has sprung out of that borrowed time is the most natural course. Then comes the projection forward. If you’re playing with house money, do you play it conservative only betting on the best odds? Or do you look for some long shots that would pay off big because let’s face it you were supposed to be cashed out long ago? I’m sure that you had a gut feeling about what you would tell me to do. The question is can you follow your own advice?
We’re all living on borrowed time. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve beaten a terminal disease or been healthy as a horse since birth. It’s not completely up to us when we cash out. So with that little bit of clarity from your gut, you need to decide, what are you doing with the chips that you have today? There’s no particularly wrong answer, just an answer that’s right for you.
Deal ’em!
Pete
I don’t feel comfortable sharing their names as I have not asked for parental permission. Nor would I ask because these people have definitely suffered enough. In my almost twenty years of coaching, I’ve lost no less than five former players to suicide, drugs/alcohol and avoidable accidents. This may not be statistically significant to some but it is something that I carry with me always. In the eyes of many, the job of a coach is to direct an individual or group in technique and tactics in order to win a particular contest.
The story of Superman becomes very boring without Kryptonite. A man who is super strong, fast, invulnerable, can fly and shoots lasers from his eyes is not a compelling story. His abilities make him unbeatable. So defeating evil-doers is not a matter of ability, it’s a matter of time. Without Kryptonite, Superman’s story becomes one of an interplanetary janitor who is here to clean up our biggest societal messes. A completely infallible hero is difficult to sell but exposing his Achilles heel makes him a star.
Huryk Unlimited 