With March Madness ending, baseball is now in full swing making me one happy girl. I love sports, all kinds, everything from golf to football. I’m an avid supporter of sports programs in our community because I know that many of the lessons I learned as a young girl playing ball on the fields behind Ashland City Elementary School have served me well in life today.
Ya’ll may find it hard to believe but at 5’3” and thick hipped, I wasn’t a stellar athlete. I know. I was shocked myself. What I lacked in athletic ability, I made up for in heart. Even though my skill set was somewhat lacking, I had great coaches that pushed me to hustle leaving it all on the field, motivated me to be best me I could be, and encouraged me when I felt like giving up.
It’s tax season. I’m crazy busy. All of us accountants are. Just ask Frank Luppe and Patsy Perry. They’ll tell you. We’re all busting it right now. The old “Rise, Grind, Repeat” mantra is real life and gets real old, but sports taught me to dig down deep and finish strong— even when you’re tired, even when you don’t feel like it.
Playing on a high school softball team that got our brains beat in on the regular, I learned quickly that you’re not always going to win and while it hurts, it is what it is. You don’t always come out on top. Athletes know this and know how to move on. While that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt like everything to fall short and lose, it’s necessary to wipe the dust off, wash the grass stain out of the uniform, and try again. Life is like that. When things don’t go like you wanted, shake it off and move on.
Hard work does yield results. Most athletes know that time, energy, and determination equals success. They’ve been through enough games to know the formula and see the results. Fact of life: hard work pays. This principle won’t change. We all need to push ourselves beyond our comfort zone if we want something outstanding. Sorry, that’s just how it is. There isn’t a softer, easier way. Put your game face on and get after it.
If you don’t take a chance, you don’t risk failure; and at the same token, if you don’t take a chance, you may not win either. I often cringe when a basketball player, down by two, tries to make a risky three-pointer at the buzzer. When that ball bounces off the rim and falls short, it’s painful to witness but when that big orange ball strips the net winning the game at the last second….my goodness, ya’ll, it’s liked the heavens aligned just right for a moment creating the most beautifully crafted moment.
Unless, of course, you’re the other team.
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