Days Like Today

I love to golf. I'm horrible at it, but I love it. I have played hundreds of times and my game has improved, slightly, subtlety, almost imperceptibly. In fact if you didn't know me or hadn't golfed with me you would never see the improvements.

If you have golfed you will be able to identify with the feeling I am about to describe. After shanking shot after shot into the trees, the lake, the next fairway, and even into houses close to the course, the inevitable conversation starts in your head. It goes something like this:

[After shank #6]
"Maybe I should take up bowling. There are tons of fat guys that do that."

[After shank #15]
"They don't seem to have a problem. It can't be near as frustrating as this stupid game."

[After shank #22]
"Yeah, bowling! That would be the perfect pass time."

[After shank #??, because you quit counting after thirty something]
"That's it I'm throwing these #@$% clubs into the next body of water I see!"

Then you line up at 18, it's a long par four and because you are so exhausted from chasing your ball and so fed up with this entire game you begrudgingly pull out the driver. You know its going left...or right...or way left...or way right, but right now you don't really care. You tee up your ball, not giving any thought to height, look down the fairway with little to no regard for your alignment, hall off and smack the ball with everything you've got. Again, not giving one hoot where it goes.

Your buddy exclaims, "Nice shot!" And since you have been taking his ribbing for the last 17 holes you decide that an acceptable alternative to throwing your clubs in the lake will come with wrapping your driver around his head. You are just about to do so when your eyes look up and you see it. Your beautiful shot sailing down the middle of the fairway, bounding toward the green, and settling just shy of the putting surface. You smile.

[After nice drive #1]
"You know what, all I need to do is get out more and I could really be good at this game."

That was our day today. Spirit was in church, and after the week we have had I was ready to chuck the clubs into the lake. Yet there he was, reverent, participatory, angelic. I don' know where it came from, I don't dare ask, but like the drive that bought my next round of golf, today bought me more time. Time to cope, time to understand, time to reflect, because Spirit is exactly that, the Spirit of our house, and there is no one on this planet I trust more than him.

So well done Spirit, you just bought another 18 holes.