Skip to main content

Navigating Catholic Life - Part 5 Golf vs Life Analogy: Pay Attention!

Image
By
 +
JMJ
 
By Lilrizz - Personal Photo, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16381754

NTS: Journal July 14, 2022

 A number of factors conspired to make me decide to spend more time golfing this year.  Stress relief was the major factor.  Getting up early in the morning for a 7am tee-time is, frankly, great.  I was able to beat the heat of the day (which was gruelling this summer) and take a two hour 'walk' to exercise and disconnect from the issues causing my stress levels to increase.

On one of these 'walks' I realised that golf has some analogies for life:

  1. You don't hold life in your hands, it sits there waiting for you to do something, while all the external variables continue to shift.
  2. You need to pay attention to a lot of subtle variables to make a good shot and even then the wind and other hazards (ie. bunker) can suddenly change and make a great shot into a good shot (which I would be happy with) and a good shot into a bad one.
  3. You are responsible for your own performance. No one is going to tackle or block your shot.  You are competing against yourself.
  4. You will be better than some and worse than others and practice (ie hard work) is the only way to improve your performance.
  5. Sometimes the course will beat you even when you are on your game. Your best game may not be enough.
     

Playing on this Golf is like Life, you need to pay attention to move in the right direction, and I have made many missteps. Here's the 'process' that I am trying to follow to improve my game:

  1. Ball: Tee-up or examine the lie of the golf ball = Know where you are or situational awareness. If you don't know your starting point you won't be able to make a plan from 'here' to 'there'.
  2. Target: You need to look at your target and plan the series of shots needed to get to the green and put the ball in the hole. Then note the current point the your are aiming for in the drive from the tee-box.  This first point may be only 12 inches from the ball in order to try to correct for a 'slice' or 'hook'.
  3. Club: Check the distance and select an appropriate club for the lie of the ball and shot you are trying to make.
  4. Ground your club: The club is designed to hit the ball in a certain way.  You need to setup your stance etc to hit a good shot.  Happy Gilmore is a fictional piece of work. As a friend said, golf is hard with a combination of fine and coarse motor control functions. Note: I have noticed that some professionals ground the club with their right hand and then setup their grip.
  5. Landmarks: Orient yourself to the ball (distance and position relative to your lead foot), and look at your far, medium and close landmarks that will lead to the green.
  6. Stance: Settle into the stance appropriate for the shot. Make certain to remember to breath :-).
  7. Agility: To swing well you have to be warmed up and flexible.  Maybe the warmup should have been the first step. Anyway, stretch before each shot and take a couple practice swings.
  8. Ready: Check both your position and your mindset for the shot.
  9. Aim: Check that the club face is aimed correctly, look at your target in front of the ball and ... take another deep breath.
  10. Fire: Check another deep breath and take a deep breath and let it part way out (just like in other shooting sports).

In an ideal world, the ball will take the path you wanted and land by or near your target.  That seldom is the case for average golfer and in life we are all average ;-).

 Learn from the shot, then put it behind you. This definitely applies to golf and life, if you can't learn from the past and then leave the past behind you, then the burden will continue to grow until you are crushed.

In life, a lot of these points help us practice life and Catholicism in a more deliberate way instead of leaving the autopilot in control.

I hope this is as helpful to you as these journal entries have been to me.

P^3

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Curious Case of Steve Skojec and the Dangers of Deep Diving into the Crisis Sub-Titled: The Failings of Others

By
 + JMJ It's been a while now since Steve Skojec sold 1P5 and abandoned the Catholic Faith. I've been a 'Trad' since 1982 and in those 40+ years I seen this death-spiral before with a similar end point. It seems that anyone who jumps into the fray unprepared for the enormous task of righting wrongs will, eventually, become discouraged by not the task but the people who surround them.   I remember when Skojec complained of the treatment his family received from a traditional priest.  This seems to have been the start of the end for him. So what can we learn from the likes of Steve Skojec, Michael Voris (maybe?), Louie Verrecchio, Gerry Matatix and other celebrity Catholics? Probably quite a lot about what not to do. First, don't burn out on the crisis?  When you burn out, on work or anything else, little things assume a more greater importance than they are due.   This is one of my 'canary in the coal mine' signals that I've been stretching myself too th...
Post a Comment
Read more

Dogmas of the Catholic Faith (de fide) - Expanded Listing

By
+ JMJ A friend had mentioned that he has seen a longer list of truths of the Faith than the one I posted here .  I have finally discovered it online. I have yet to completely determine what dogmas were missed in the original, those I have found are highlighted. Source: A List Of The Dogmas Of The Catholic Church - Fr. Carota Alternate Source: Referencing Ott   Posts Listing the Dogmas of the Catholic Church Dogmas of the Catholic Faith (de fide) - Expanded Listing: Answer for Reader (Oct 2022) Updated List of Teachings of the Catholic Church (Oct 2021) *** Dogmas of the Catholic Faith (Oct 2015) De Fide teaching of the Catholic Church (Apr 2013)           *** Latest version    
1 comment
Read more

De Fide Teachings of the Catholic Church (Updated)

By
+ JMJ  Update: I was reviewing Ott's work directly and noted that some of the Teachings are De Fide while others are different levels of authority (such as Sent Certa etc).  So please refer to Ott for the actual classification). Posts Listing the Dogmas of the Catholic Church Dogmas of the Catholic Faith (de fide) - Expanded Listing: Answer for Reader (Oct 2022) Updated List of Teachings of the Catholic Church (Oct 2021) *** Dogmas of the Catholic Faith (Oct 2015) De Fide teaching of the Catholic Church (Apr 2013)           *** Latest version  
Post a Comment
Read more

Homily vs Sermon

By
+ JMJ Something that I've noticed is that Modern Catholics use the phrase 'Homily' instead of 'Sermon'. I've often wondered about this difference. Here's what I found Catholic Encyclopedia (1910) Homily: ...Since Origen's time homily has meant, and still means, a commentary, without formal introduction, division, or conclusion, on some part of Sacred Scripture , the aim being to explain the literal, and evolve the spiritual, meaning of the Sacred Text.  ... Wikipedia Sermon: : A sermon is an oration , lecture , or talk by a member of a religious institution or clergy . Sermons address a scriptural, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. Elements of the sermon often include exposition, exhortation, and practical application.   Catholic Encyclopedia (1910) Sermon: As to preaching at the present day, we can clearly trace the influe...
Post a Comment
Read more

Becoming Traditional Catholic Part I

By
+ JMJ It is a big step from the non-Traditional to Traditional Catholic World. First of all, the Trad world is much smaller, isolated and under siege. This leads to a number of interesting elements that a person making the transition needs to take into account. The Trad World Is Smaller It is a fact that in the states there are about 30,000 Traditional Catholics who support the SSPX and about 3,000 in Canada.  The other Traditionalit orders (FSSP, ICK, etc), I assume, are in the same ball park if not smaller. Let put that in perspective, in my area there are 270,000 non-Traditional Catholics. Consequently, aside from the larger centers,  a Traditional 'Parish' or Mass Centre will be 200 people or less. This has the advantage of being like an extended family and cozy. It has the disadvantage that any crazy 'uncles' in that family will be in plain sight. Be forewarned that any eccentricity that would be drowned in a sea of people in a non-Traditiona...
Post a Comment
Read more