Sunday, June 28, 2009

A team defining "Teamwork"

I started golfing less than a year ago. I'm surrounded by friends who are not only great golfers, but also good teachers. They've helped me come a long way. Last week, I was told I'm part of a "team".
"What team?" I asked
"Golf team, to compete in a championship," my friend's wife said.
"You got to be kidding me!" I said. "Are you serious?"
"This is no joke. You will be competing in a Golf championship this Sunday," she said.
"And we'll give you a ceremonial Indian battle send-off before you go out to compete," my wife joined in.
I felt a little weak, and my anxiety level inched upwards.
"And instead of the traditional sword, we'll give you golf-clubs," my wife said, smiling.
"The sword might be a better option," I muttered. "At least I can scare some competitors away."

I practiced a bit for the next few days. The big day finally arrived. The organizers did a wonderful job at the Goose-Creek golf club, looking out for every little detail. And then I was fortunate to witness some spectacular golf played by the veterans in our team, who were incidentally, the defending champions from last year. There was some powerful hitting and some exquisite chip shots. And on top of that there was some unbelievable "putting" by a certain physician turned golfer! Although I was the weakest member of our team, I was never made to feel that way. "There's no 'I' in team," our team captain said. Anyway, our team won the tournament by five strokes. But there was still more to come. The tournament organizers also had a raffle. As the the winning ticket for the grand-prize (a wedge set) was being pulled out of the bucket, one of the stars in our team suddenly developed a sixth sense. He started from his seat. "That's mine," he said.
"We haven't even looked at the ticket yet," the official said.
"Well, go ahead and look. It has my name on it," our team member said.
The official looked at the ticket, and indeed, it was his name!! And I have no explanation for how that happened.

Extrapolating this to the real world, it is so much easier to navigate life, with all its trials and tribulations, if we work as a team with people that surround us. And this is true in our professional, social and personal lives.

"If we know we have people by our side with whom we share implicit trust, we meet life honestly, courageously and with integrity. That is how character is built." ~ Eleanore Roosevelt

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Sunday, June 14, 2009

Staying eternally youthful!

Have you ever wondered what the world would be like if hair-color had not been invented? Let me be more precise--- What would our friends look like if there was no such thing as hair-color! Let me think..... well, my friends would look exactly the same, as none of them use any dye because they've all discovered the fountain of eternal youth (wink, wink!!). Here's the answer to the first question. If mankind was not blessed with the invention of hair-color--- caps, hats and all sorts of headgear would be extremely popular!

Anyway, I have nothing against hair-color. If the results make somebody feel good, go for it and more power to you. Age and aging is a lot of perception and is relative to any individual person. When I was in my twenties, anybody close to fifty was real "old." I am forty-seven now, and fifty seems relatively young to me!

Even if we all stay young at heart, the physical limitations do catch up. And sometimes its hard to admit that fact. I was at a get-together recently where the guests had to sing along in a chorus and were handed pieces of paper with written lyrics in small print. The guests were all about my age, give or take a few years on either side. What followed was mass confusion as most people couldn't read properly and everyone was too "young" to ask for or pull out their spectacles!!

I really think age is a number that gets too much attention. Youthfulness of a person is not proportional to his or her age. We get to middle age when "a broad mind and a narrow waist begin to change places." So staying mentally and emotionally youthful is really in our own hands.

Youth is really not a time of life, its a state of mind. Youthfulness does not leave us, its the other way around. Getting up in years does bring in some degree of maturity, although with a wide range. You see, in the cycle of life, growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional. We all know people who are up there in years, but still have a lot of growing up to do!

"If the Will, Imagination and Vigor of our Emotions stays strong, the vibrancy of youth is ours to keep." ~ ac

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Sunday, June 7, 2009

One year and counting......

It has been a year since I started writing this blog. I am pleasantly surprised at the following it has developed over that time.

Each one of you has had a role to play in encouraging me to keep writing. So I thank you all for reading and sharing. A little extra gratitude for a lot of you who take the time (and have the courage!) to express your thoughts as comments or E-mails to me.

The Internet has truly made the world a "global village". I've had E-mails from Canada, India, Australia, Thailand, South Africa, Panama and England, among other places. I've discovered new friends and reconnected with some that I had lost touch with. The conversations that I have with some of you on Mondays following a new post (in the form of E-mails, comments and phone calls) draws me closer to you. And for that, I am eternally grateful. I'm always surprised at the depth and magnitude of the response these posts elicit.

I pen ideas and thoughts that I feel are relevant to my family and friends. As we travel on this journey called life, we all build little worlds of our own. We form complex social circles that interconnect with each other. We compete, celebrate, fight, love, help, argue, dance, laugh, party.....all at the same time!! And that makes life interesting.

My posts have nothing new. I just put in words, the thoughts and feelings we all harbor inside us. A big THANK YOU to each one of you......... as long as you keep reading and interacting, I'll keep writing.

"If what you read with your eyes is a reflection of your heart, it will awaken your soul." ~ ac

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