You've got balls!!!

My Pen Mates,

Not to worry, despite the threatening title, this posting is not meant to confront, insult or challenge anyone. Rather, it's a reflection on the complexity of adult life.

Language is peppered with ball-referenced idioms: "Keep your eye on the ball!", "The ball is in your court", "Run with the ball", "Don't drop the ball!", etc... In my opinion, it's part of the reason why ball sports are so popular; players and spectators alike have a singular concern: shoot the ball in the hoop, get it in the end zone, hit it out of the ballpark, sink it on the green. In other words score and score at any cost! All plays attendant to getting this done is what creates excitement, and skilled players earn mucho bucks and adulation for playing the ball with accuracy, speed, grace, and stamina. And what of the fans? Granted they share the joy of their player/team's triumphs, suffer their failings, and inspired by their efforts.

But you know what it all comes down to? These events are a potent distraction from the reality of adult life. No one in real life ever plays with just one ball; we, all of us are struggling jugglers. How I wish sports is a true metaphor for life. That would mean a singular known objective, a venue that's pre-determined, a well-defined set of rules, and players who are either team-mates or opponents. If you set out to get a good team/coach/trainer/marketer together, your chances are greatly improved.

In life, you're playing more than one game at a time, the rules sometimes get mixed-up, the players constantly change, and the arena morphs with the season__ and that's with just one sport. Factor in the challenges unique to the "sport" of work, raising children, staying healthy, personal development, finance, and family/interpersonal relationships, and you would wish you were in the coliseum facing lions! That's not even counting elective "sports" like volunteer/civic duties, hobbies, and social responsibilities.

Bottom line is that we humans truly are not inclined to multi-task. We have to work very hard to be good at anything, and we can't be good at everything. That's why we always organize; to keep it simple and to get others to rally around our objectives. It's the premise behind social structure.

And the testament to our natural aversion to the pressures and anxieties of juggling multiple balls? __Our love of sports where only one ball is played at a time......

Mon