All Skate

A nameless roller-rink D.J.

“Are you ready? Are you ready to seize the day?” Or will you let an opportunity pass you by as if it were that popular girl whose attention you were trying to get at a middle school skating party? Sure there was the risk that your wheels might get caught sending one of you to the E.R. with a broken arm, but wasn’t that was a risk that every kid is willing to take?

Are you ready to fail? These are words that are sure to open a wound or two, especially for those of us who have long forgotten the details of our formative years. I vaguely remember keeping those memories locked up in my gym bag, and throwing it in the dumpster at the close of the school year. Still, I must admit there were ample learning opportunities that I might have missed, even some defining moments.

Now?

A life-altering event is rarely announced. It will just occur. The opportunist will recognize it as such; the rest will see it as an intrusion, or even a distraction, from their routine and pray that it will go away. Now back to the question, “Are you ready to seize the day?”

It’s the fear of failure that separates the dreamers from the doers, the starters from the finishers, and dare I add, the skaters from the bench-sitters. It comes down to our willingness, or ability, to accurately assess risk if we want to learn to overcome fear. Analysis paralysis occurs when we analyze the crap out of what we wish to achieve, snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory. It’s that little voice inside of us that plays like an 8-track of Stevie Nix telling us lies, sweet little lies that only the worst outcome is possible and that any failure is terminal.

the odds are…

It takes more than a healthy level of self-esteem to think of ourselves as victors and conquerors. It takes a willingness to try, even faced with insurmountable odds, even if it means we will experience failure. Someone much wiser than I once said, “Failure isn’t defined by how far we fall, but by how high we bounce.” His words are inspiring, even if his name escapes me.

But learning is predicated on our willingness to fail just as experimentation is the foundation of personal growth. The future belongs to the curious and the inquisitive, the resourceful, and the resolute. For those whose comfort zone is defined by the number of boxes that they must check before they call it a day, I caution you, “Don’t try this at home.” Failure is a necessary and integral part of what it takes to become the person we are destined to be. Failure isn’t a destination, it need not be more than a push-pin on a map; a highway rest-stop that we may need to visit to check our bearings and relieve ourselves of that truck-stop mega-burrito that is causing so much discomfort.

Gaps Happen

If you are following my story, you may notice that there are gaps and deviations from the usual subject matter. For the record, I am managing my disease rather well, but living with it can make for a boring read. When compared to the pandemic, there are no daily White House briefings that report the number of new cases, no antagonists posing as journalists, or no newly minted bobble-heads strategically placed on a podium. Each day I do what I must to live with it. Tomorrow, I will adapt and adjust if needed, rinse, and repeat.

Any deviation stems from my desire to stay sharp, flexing my creative muscles, to remind me that I still can. For kicks, I drifted into a political sandbox and tried to apply real-world logic and thoughtful analysis to the abstract; edicts handed down by our current Governor, but that proved to be low-hanging fruit. After all, how many synonyms are there for power-drunk partisan hack.

I even considered documenting the impact of the virus on the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) predicting how many decades it will take to flatten the curve and absorbing nearly 40 million non-essential workers. Unfortunately, that was far too depressing. If I am going to take a reader to the edge of a cliff, I don’t think that it should be a real one overlooking the abyss.

As of now, I am looking for something new, something to keep my fingers nimble and my mind sharp. If I fail at this new endeavor, I will learn from it, blaze a trail through the morass and emerge even stronger. World domination, hypothetically speaking, is still in my sights, unfortunately dominating something as simple as a slight radius in my driveway is proving to test my geographical footprint.

What opportunities are you missing, or are you not seeing, if any. If there is an upside to a global pandemic, I suspect that these days, weeks, months, or years, will be remembered as the “Great Equalizer” when the mighty fall and the upstarts, the nimble, the curious and the inquisitive rule the day.

So what are you waiting for? The music is still playing. Maybe she is still out there, skating or even waiting?

Carpe Diem ~ All Skate.

Thanks for reading, liking, and sharing.

Ivy is sitting on the bench trying to figure our which skates go on the front feet and which go on the back.

Al and his faithful, but overly analytical sidekick, Ivy the wonder pup.

It’s too late now, pup. The bus is here to take you back to school. That’s what happens when you spend all night in the snack bar. You miss a lot.