March madness

Even though I have agreed to blog on March 18th, I decided to blog today as well. It's March and time for the NCAA college basketball tournament. I'm getting ready to do my picks for the men's basketball tournament. Every year I fill out the brackets to make my picks for the winners in each bracket. My husband and I compete for bragging rights when the tournament is over. I've always said I love sports because I grew up with three brothers who all played several sports. When I was growing up girls didn't have as many opportunities to participate in sports as they do now. I've always wondered whether I might have been involved in some competitive sport if I had grown up in later years. Now I play tennis in competitive leagues. I want to be like my friend Joanna, who is in her seventies and still plays competitive tennis. I want to be Joanna when I grow up.

The other day I had the opportunity to shoot some baskets. I hadn't done that in a long time. I was bad. I hit only two shots out of twenty. My complete lack of skill reminded me that in order to be good at a sport a person has to practice. I really couldn't expect to hit a lot of baskets when I hadn't picked up a basketball in years. The need for practice goes with anything we choose to do. A writer writes. A basketball players shoots a lot of hoops. A tennis player hit a lot of balls. Golfers spend time at the driving range. Pianist spend a lot of hours playing the piano. I have a flute that I haven't played in years. If I get it out, I can still play a scale, but I certainly couldn't expect to join the symphony.

Someday I want to write a book about a basketball coach, who takes his team to the Big Dance. So every year I watch and listen carefully and collect information that I hope to use in that book. I like to think about the saying from the old ABC Wide World of Sports. "The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat."

As I close I just have to say, since my favorite team the Wake Forest Demon Deacons aren't in the Big Dance this year, GO ZAGS.
Merrillee

posted by Merrillee @ 8:00 PM