Failure

Perhaps my favorite sporting event to watch on TV is The Masters which begins today in Augusta, Georgia at Augusta National. I love everything about it, the lush green fairways and greens, the roar of the crowd throughout the course and the excitement on Sunday at Amen Corner. It also helps that The Masters happens to be played in early April, when the weather is getting nicer where I live.

Anyway, for some reason, I have always been a fan of Greg Norman. At one time he was the #1 ranked player in the world. Yet, several times at The Masters and also twice in Toledo at the PGA Championship at Inverness Club, he let leads slip away only to lose on the final hole. Included in those losses were improbable shots from his competitors which sealed his fate (Larry Mize's chip in during a playoff at Augusta and Bob Tway's hole-out from the bunker on hole #18 at Inverness).

Many called Norman a "choker." I do not like it when athletes are called names like this. I remember a plaque I had hanging on my wall when I was young that said, "Never criticize anyone else until you have walked a mile in their moccasins." Good advice.

In today's Toledo Blade, Norman had this to say about returning to Augusta, the site of so much pain in his life, "I think I learned more about myself by the failures here and the way I conducted myself." In other words, he was saying that much good came from much pain.

Very classy...and very instructional. We all can learn from what he said. Oftentimes it is during our darkest moments that we learn and benefit the most.

Smile

My son and I did something last night that we rarely do, we went shopping...at the mall! You want to talk about a couple of ducks out of water! We literally had to consult with the mall directory three times to find our way around.

Anyway, I noticed while walking around that many people seemed very rushed. Many also seemed unhappy. I thought how sad this is. Then I realized that this describes me many times when I am stressed and rushed. I know I need to chill out and enjoy the season, but sometimes I just keep making it more difficult than it needs to be and I miss many opportunities to simply smile.

This morning I was reading The Blade and there was an article by Tom Walton about clever T-shirt sayings which made me smile. I thought I would share some of them here so your Monday can start off with a smile like mine did.

"I'm not bossy, I just know what you should be doing."
"Obey gravity … it's the law."
"What if the Hokey-Pokey really is what it's all about?"
"You're starting to make sense. It's time to up my medication."
"I'm not a waitress, but I play one at home."
"Do I look like I'm kidding?"
"Jenius."
"They say I have A.D.D. but they just don't … oh look! A chicken!"
"Keep staring at me. I may do a trick."
"I'm still HOT, it just comes in flashes now."
"Nothing ruins good parenting like teenagers."
"Instant human-Just add coffee."
"What is the speed of dark?"
"Bad spellers? Untie!"
"I'm actually quite pleasant - until I wake up."
"Sometimes I wonder, why is that beer truck getting bigger? Then it hits me!"
"Still young enough to know everything."
"Always being right is an awesome responsibility."
"I childproofed my house, but they still get in."
"Organized people are just too lazy to look for things."
"Ever considered being a mime?"
"Take my advice. I'm not using it."
"Why be difficult? With a little more effort, you can be impossible."

There. Now you're ready to tackle your week...with a smile!

Servant Leadership

This is a sad day for University of Toledo athletics, at least it is for me. Tom Amstutz, UT's football coach announced yesterday that he will be stepping down as UT's coach.

I am sad because Tom is a good man. His heart is as big as Texas and he truly cares for his players. However, his teams have struggled over the past several years, so in the business of football, a coach typically cannot survive that.

In the Toledo Blade this morning I found an interesting quote which sums up why I believe Coach Amstutz was such a good leader. Aaron Opelt, the Rockets Junior quarterback had this to say about his coach, "He looks after us. We're number one. He doesn't think about himself, ever. It's always about us."

As a leader, wouldn't you want that said of you?

Isn't that also what we can say about Jesus?..."He looks after us. We're number one. He doesn't think about himself, ever. It's always about us."

"Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave--just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Matthew 20:26b-28

Begin With The End In Mind

Today, I noticed in our local paper an obituary that saddened me. I know, I know...obituaries aren't usually uplifting, but this one caught my eye.

The reason it stood out was because it was so short. One sentence to be exact. No family listed, no accomplishments listed...only the time and location for the memorial service.

I hope that this obituary was short simply to save money. If not, this is very sad. It's as if this obituary is saying this person really didn't live. All he did was be born and now he's dead. Sad.

Let's not let that be the case with our lives.

I have mentioned this before but I am going to do so again. We must picture our funeral and what others would say about us and how they were impacted by us. Then we must live up to those standards so that people actually will say those things about us.

Live with the end in mind. Carpe Diem!

Second Chance

Lucas Wells is a friend of my oldest daughter, Kristin. He was a classmate of hers and he is extremely talented. He was a good athlete while in school and he also was amazing in the school musicals.

Last spring he was asked to join 100 other hopefuls to audition for a spot in the Broadway production Spring Awakening, a rock musical that won eight 2007 Tony Awards, including best musical.

In a recent Toledo Blade article, Wells told of his audition experience:

Invited to the final audition on Monday, Wells was excited and intimidated, because it was with the show’s composer, Duncan Sheik, and lyricist, Steven Sater.“I had idolized Duncan Sheik for so long, because he’s so good, and I tried not psyching myself out before I went in there,” Wells said.

It didn’t work. The staff could tell Wells was nervous, and after he performed, they sent him off for a few hours to relax, then invited him back to try again.

The breather worked, and Wells earned praise from all involved.

But he began to wonder what was really going to happen. Then his phone rang, and Wells was offered a part in the tour as a “swing,” which is a member of the ensemble, and an understudy to the two male lead roles, Melchior and Moritz. Wells said he was stunned. He had no idea they were considering him to play Moritz.

So now Lucas is on Broadway. Very cool stuff!

However, the thing I really am encouraged by is the fact that the staff gave Lucas a second chance at his final audition. They obviously saw talent and they gave him the benefit of the doubt...something most of us can do more of.