The Moment

Life is full of moments: both literally as a collection of sequential short periods of time, and metaphorically as an anthology of events which are themselves the product of either our choices or the choices of others, or both.

The moment you choose Monte Carlo biscuits instead of Tim Tams. The moment you grab your blue undies instead of your red ones. The moment when you realize a wild rodent has eaten some of your bread. The moment you sit down to write a blog with one idea, then quickly switch to another. The moment the ball hits the underside of the crossbar and goes into the goal rather than back into the field of play. The moment you walk outside and feel the bite of winter wrapped in the weakened warmth of the sun. The moment you pull your beanie on your head.

The moment your open your eyes in the morning.The moment you open your eyes in the middle of the night. The moment you close your eyes and you feel hot tears burn your cheek. The moment you put your glasses on. The moment you take them off.

The moment you say yes. The moment you say no. The moment you hesitate, and your pause is interpreted as an answer. The moment you finally make a decision about which you have agonized for too long. The moment you tell someone about that decision.

The moment you understand yourself. The moment you understand someone else. The moment you become suddenly and painfully aware of how little you know, of how wrong you have been, and how lost you are. The moment when you are found. The moment you experience grace. The moment you show it to another person.

Life is full of moments. They come and they go: never to return, never to be changed, never to be corrected. Make your choices and live with the consequences. Be grateful when you don't receive the pain you deserve, and humble when you do.

Photo source:
http://www.dezeen.com/2011/09/15/watch-sculptures-moments-in-time-by-dominic-wilcox/

An Invitation to Pain

Roughly four weeks ago now I made a decision which has had a significant ongoing impact on my life. This is not an unusual thing. Not for me, nor anyone else. Life is full of choices, and all choices have consequences. Naturally, many of our daily decisions are trivial matters which we make quickly and without any real consideration. However, the bigger, potentially more beneficial or disastrous choices must be thought through carefully.

This is one area where I excel: thinking things through. I am an analytical and reflective person who does not take major decisions lightly. Generally, I am neither reactive nor spontaneous. I weigh up my options and take into account the possible ramifications. I run through scenarios in my mind, and I also talk to people. Sometimes, I talk because I think the person to whom I am speaking may be able to help me with some fresh insight into the situation. Other times, I talk because the act of vocalizing a problem or a dilemma is, in itself, helpful in providing some clarification.

What was the decision I made? I was reading the church newsletter and they were calling for players for the soccer team. I knew it was an all age team and I thought to myself, I'd like to do that. So I thought about it, and I talked to my wife and children about it. It would cost me 5-6 hours per week, a couple of hundred dollars to register, and it would probably hurt, especially in the pre season training period. There was also the possibility that I would suffer serious injury. I might not even make the squad as there were going to be more players than required.

Eventually, and I'm talking days later, I joined the team. The first training session was 4 weeks ago, and I have been in pain everyday since. I finish training feeling a mixture and elation and exhaustion, and despite the agony, I look forward to going back for more. 

I'm loving being pushed physically by a coach who is harder on us than I ever would be on myself. I'm enjoying rediscovering my skills, (I was in retirement for 30 years) and the challenge of trying to find the speed I lost somewhere along the way, and the power. I like the camaraderie and the dynamic of the different personalities of my teammates. My body is screaming for relief but this is good for me as a whole person, so I ignore the pain and treat the muscle injuries, and go back for more punishment. When I'm straining for breath after a brutal series of running drills, when I am in the thick of the game, running, tackling and kicking, I forget my troubles. I have found another form of escape. I feel at peace. So far the decision to play soccer has proved to be a good one. Stay tuned.

When have you made a decision which has been painful, either emotionally or physically, but has turned out to be of great benefit to you?

Photo sources
http://therightangle.co/issues/moral-dilemmas-in-citizen-journalism.html/
http://www.coastalsoccerusa.com/curriculum-methodology.php

Axe video referees

I'm sick of the video referee system in the NRL. I have been a supporter of it from day one but I believe it is ruining the game. They said that using the video referee would mean that the officials would get most decisions right. But it's not happening. The standard of referring is going down the gurgler and I've had enough. Let the guys on the field make the calls so we can focus our anger and disappointment on them, instead of on an invisible third referee hiding in a box somewhere.
We can't blame our own teams for their performances. If we lose it's always the referees fault. Everyone knows that.
Furthermore they take too long to make decisions. Endless replays from all different angles, slow mo, super slow mo, forwards, backwards...yawn. Players waiting, fans waiting...yawn. If we aren't careful we'll turn our great game of rugby league into an altogether beast like the NFL.