Time to Reflect: Step 40

Last summer while waiting to attend a wedding in West Patterson, New Jersey my daughter and I visited the Yogi Berra museum. While I confess to holding some distaste for the Yankees who in my opinion have a lineup of overly compensated ball players, Yogi is the kind of guy I’d personally like to know. Not the flamboyant superstar, just a good solid clutch hitter, his quotes have become legendary. On this, major league baseball fantasy league draft day, I thought it apropos to quote him here. In his inimitable fashion he said, “Slump? I ain’t in no slump…I just ain’t hitting.” This relates closely to another assertion Yogi made where he observed that 90% of the game was mental, and only the other half was physical. If a person is busy worrying about how this equation does not add up he misses the point. When confronted with the circumstances I have found myself in over the past two years it’s easy to take the view that I am in a slump. My routine is irregular. Many nights sleep eludes my worn out body and mind. My exhaustive state limits my mental stamina, which in turn leads to mind games regarding my physical health. But just as Yogi started with a question it is important for me to question this view. Earlier this week a discussion centered on whether or not the recession has ended. According to a lot of statistics that I don’t understand the economy has turned the corner. At the same time I recall labeling the economy as suffering a recession months, if not a year, before the actual data proved the assertion correct. Does this have a bearing on how I, or anyone else views his circumstances? Again, turning to Mr. Berra and his ballpark wisdom, it’s important to see the situation for what it is. “I just ain’t hitting.” When one is in a slump every opportunity to stand in the batter’s box looks like another chance to strike out. When one accepts the fact that one must select the right bat, see the ball clearly, and make contact then every time in the batter’s box becomes an opportunity to find a hole in which to drive the ball and get a hit. Getting up each day, facing the challenges of life, accepting the swings and misses, the foul balls, and being robbed by an infielder with incredible range are all aspects of the game. Life is never filled with constant hits. Anyone who knows anything about baseball knows the best hitters only get a hit about a third of a time, and one can become a millionaire hitting a quarter of the time. So, my friends out there in the blogosphere who are about to make their fantasy selections remember the players you pick will not have slumps they just won’t be hitting every day. Now, getting back to my personal situation, despite receiving zero comments most days I continue to post a new step on this blog every day. It is only a matter of selecting the right topic, clearly identifying the cares and concerns of my audience, and making the connection that will instill each reader to return again and again. Then, I will truly be hitting.

Time to Reflect: Step 33

When looking for some idea to reflect upon that relates closely to my situation I turned to the The Quotations Page ( http://www.quotationspage.com/mqotd.html ). There I found the words of a spouse whose initials LBJ were the same as those of her more famous husband. Lady Bird Johnson said, “It's odd that you can get so anesthetized by your own pain or your own problem that you don't quite fully share the hell of someone close to you.” Many of you who have followed this blog since its inception or know me personally realize that my status as a “former” teacher, professor, etc. as stated in the biography to your left is not by choice. Having lost a teaching position nearly two years ago my first reaction was to pursue a new one. After having dozens of applications go unanswered and a half dozen interviews fail to gather a single offer my efforts turned to part-time substitute teaching. Still, our income had shrunk by forty percent. As my wife, Debbie, sat firmly in the back of the boat paddling to keep us on course with her teaching career in tact I kept bailing water out of the front of the boat. My bucket kept getting smaller and the water kept coming. Deb kept paddling. At the urging of her sister, Kathy, who works for Workforce in Wisconsin I looked into what they had to offer in Southern California. Visiting their One Stop Center the focus shifted to transferable skills, noteworthy achievements and networking. As part of this last component I went through training and became part of the professional networking group Experience Unlimited (http://www.euorangecounty.com), attended a workshop on Linked In, and used my most marketable skill to start this blog. All the while Deb kept paddling and her arms grew weary. Somehow, in my rush to find a salve for my own pain I failed to look back and see what I could do to ease her load. She has always been the more practical pragmatic partner. Maybe that is why she loves to capture sunsets in her photographs, because they mark the end of a well-earned day of work. Most of you know I look for the silver lining in every cloud, constantly chase rainbows, and usually wake up on time to catch the sunrise bursting with the hope of a new day. It is my hope she reads these words and that they help ease her pain. So, in closing I just want to thank Richard French, who like me is an eternal optimist and up until yesterday was the president of the Irvine chapter of Experience Unlimited. Richard, whose wife also lost her job, is seeking a brighter future in another part of the country. May your buoyant spirit and charm ease the pain you share and help you find your silver lining. Our thoughts and prayers follow you every step of the way.

Time to Reflect: Step Twelve

As I take time to reflect upon the past week one thought kept creeping into my mind. The seed for the thought was a discussion of the current banking situation, but I’ll get to that in a moment. First, the thought was life is a double-edged sword. Wu Ting-Fang, a diplomat in the Qing Dynasty and minister to the U.S., Spain and Peru from 1896 to 1902 and 1907 to 1909, said, “Education is like a double-edged sword. It may be turned to dangerous uses if it not properly handled.” As a teacher and former school administrator it is clear to me my lessons on tolerance, understanding, and peaceful co-existence were not always applied on the playground and in life. Getting back to the discussion on banking, the author being interviewed stated banks were reluctant to give credit because it hurt their bottom line. He then pointed out, and here is where the double-edged sword comes into play, that credit is actually another way of saying debt. Wow, it suddenly occurred to me that my credit rating, something I have always been very proud of, is actually a debt rating. Since my creditors see me as a good risk they welcome the opportunity to let me pile up debt. Here again, Minister Ting-Fang’s words ring true. For my education had taught me an excellent credit rating is to be prized. However, the second part, that it could become dangerous if not properly handled was lost on me, and apparently a few other people, too. Another double-edged sword that constantly plagues me as a teacher, student and writer is the line between perfection and performance. In attempting to make something as clear as possible, or to know all there is to know about a subject, or to find just the right word, its always a question of is this the perfect answer or do I need to stop my quest for perfection long enough to actually perform the task at hand. No doubt Akio Toyoda and his engineers and the guys at NASA struggle with this delicate balance as they try to move forward on the road and in space. It occurs to me that at least part of our frustration with government, and particularly lawmakers, is the stagnation created by their inability to perform as they try to find the perfect solution. While there are many more such double-edged swords, the last one I want to reflect upon is the idea of security and freedom. My first flight came shortly after my oldest daughter was born. Her first flight came a few years later. Her sisters were even younger when they started to fly. Many of us view our freedom to travel as a symbol of our constitutionally protected freedom or as truly free citizens of a civilized society. Yet, as we move into the era of full body scan security there seems to be an ever-increasing cost to something we all know is supposed to be free. As usual, your comments, reflections, and thoughts are welcome and appreciated.