Michael Jordan

That’s Why They Play the Game

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 1 Comment

I saw where the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs pulled off the upset of the season when they knocked off the defending national champs in the University of Connecticut, 66-64, on a last second jumper.

At the start of the tournament, I like many others picked UConn to win it all for the fifth straight time. I seriously doubt that anybody outside of the Lady Bulldogs’ team expected them to win.

But that’s why they play the game, right?

There’s probably a deep spiritual analogy here, but I’m too tired to think of it at the moment. Maybe the takeaway is perseverance in the face of insurmountable odds. In other words, just keep showing up day after day and doing what you know to do and good things will happen.

I do know that if you take risks, you may or may not succeed, but I know for certain that you fail at 100% of the risks you do not take. As Michael Jordan once said (or at least I think it was him), you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

So keep plugging away and don’t quit.

Unless it’s almost 11 pm, then you can go to bed.

 

 

I Made This!

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / Leave a comment

I made a vanilla pumpkin pie cheesecake today. With my own hands, no less!

It even has layers. Layers, people!

I only say all this to tell you that you can do more than you think you can sometimes.

I didn’t say that if you put your mind to it, you can do anything. As hard as I try and as bad as I want it, I will never be able to dunk on a regulation basketball goal. Never. Even if I wear Michael Jordan’s Air Nikes.

I can however be all that God meant for me to be when He made me. I can fulfill the purposes He had in mind when He dreamed me up in His infinite mind.

That in my mind is way better.

Oh, and pictures to come on this spectacular (hopefully) cheesecake concoction.

 

My Sports Career

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I haven’t talked much about my athletic prowess, mostly because there’s not much to talk about in that department. My sports career was sad and short-lived, but at least I had fun. Mostly.

I tried gymnastics, which lasted all of maybe three sessions. I lost my love for it when I got the wind knocked out of me by running into the pommel horse and not timing my jump just right. The last straw was the rings, where I realized that I was indeed very much afraid of heights and not about to go upside down while I was 15 feet up in the air. Not on your life.

I’ll skip t-ball altogether, other than to say I was probably the first conscious objector to the sport, not leaving my sandbox to join the other players.

Soccer was fun, but it was mostly a spectator sport. Which is sad when you’re on the team. I don’t think I played much and when I was in the game, I observed from a great distance most of the time.

Ditto for basketball. I think I scored all of two points in my church league career, both of which came on free throws when a player from the other team, for some completely insane reason, fouled me when I got the ball. Did he think I was really going to go all Michael Jordan on him and dunk in his face?

Now I tend to spectate more than participate. I admire people who are really good at sports, good enough to make a living at it. I realize that probably only one tenth of one percent of all athletes make it to the pros. The other 99.9% greatly exaggerate their careers and boast about how they could have dunked on Michael Jordan.

Now if there had been organized badminton leagues when I was growing up, I would have totally ruled. Unfortunately, that was the 80’s and I can only wonder what might have been.