Well this blog thing should be interesting. .. I have started so many books I can't even count and shown them to no one. One email chain with a perfect subject ( thanks to Hunter) and now I think somebody might want to listen. Don't we all think we have something interesting to say? Why wouldn't someone want to listen to the stories about our adventures, mishapps and generally boring lives?
If we have imaginations ( and mine is certainly active for better or worse...) we have all dreamed of being famous. As a little boy, I won the NBA title, the Superbowl and the World Series time and time again. The Rockets and Astros would have the storied histories of the Celtics and the Yankees if my sideyard games counted in the books. What a wonderful thing the imagination is. Maybe I can find it again here.
We all had our special places. The places where our imaginations grew and we built our dream lives. Where was yours? Mine was the driveway and the side yard, the flat roof in the back, the Azalea bushes, whatever worked. The driveway became Madison Square Garden as the Rockets bested the Celtics in 7 games (instead of the other way around). The front yard became the Gulf of Mexico as my bent stick became my rod and the big Magnolia leaves I speared became trout, redfish and flounder ( trout were the long skinny leaves, redfish long and fat and flounder were the more rare round leaves). The Azalea bushes became a fort, my closet became my corporate office. A million places were built in my mind.
Although some of what we dreamed up was based in reality, there were some distinct differences. For example, the good guys always won. Life teaches us rather quickly that isn't the always the case. The bully gets the girl, the hero dies young, you know the drill. That's why imagination and positive imagination is so important. We learn to practice that winning way. When we have a set back, we can imagine winning that next time and it comes a bit easier.
I took my son to Duke Basketball camp in June and had the privallege of listening to Mike kryshewski speak. Coach talked about his days as a kid on the playground basketball court. He explained to the campers how important imagination is in sports and he took them through his routine. When he played that imaginary opponent and drove for the last shot as the 3, 2, 1 counted down he put all his effort into making that bucket. Sometimes he missed... Guess what? HE WAS FOULED!!! AND THE CROWD GOES WILD! So now little Mike is on the line for the winning free throws. Again, sometimes he missed. Wouldn't you know it, lane violation! Coach K always won.
I think sometimes when we get down we need to go to the front yard and let Olajuwon beat Bird. We need to become Nolan Ryan as he throws his 6th no hitter. It just makes you feel better. What have we got to lose? As we become adults, we get really good at imagining the bad stuff dont we? Why don't we try to imagine the good again. Now I sound like a life coach.... uh Houston we have a problem...
Back to wandering... stay tuned
Will
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