Apropos; it is Christmas: and I hope it’s a Merry One.
This rule is about gifts, something that we all know about on December the 25th. We open them up and gratification shortly ensues. It’s what we wanted, what we didn’t know we wanted, or something that we will return tomorrow. Regardless, it’s the thought that counts.
And when it comes to the officiating game, we have a gift to be involved in a game of sport – whether it be Baseball, Soccer, Football, or Basketball, we don’t sit on the bench, no – we are an active participant that never leaves the field or court. We have the gift of being involved and getting compensated for it.
And at times, we are given the gift, unbeknownst to us of experience, for a veteran official that’s been through it all to bestow and tell tales of that experience, share it with us, or harness the gift of teaching and giving it to newer officials so they won’t have to go through things that we already done did.
It’s a karmic necessity, to me, to share these gifts; to give. The officiating game is infinitesimal in learning; and you learn even more by teaching it. And so, give:
GIVE
Think of reffing as an independent soldier trying to survive on the daily. You have a unique set of experiences that surely other officials can relate to, yet will diverge somehow someway. We handle situations differently, have different rapports with different personalities, we have our own journey that we can account for that makes up your own unique experience. That’s not to say you don’t have a similar experience. Now those foreign encounters that sound alien to you, that’s that strange fruit that is invaluable intel that can help you along in your future travels and journeys. This similar experiences may be 90% the same as what you experience – yet we are looking for that 10% to extirpate to add to our hard drive. No matter what, be completely submissive in sharing this information. It can be valuable to others to know what to do, what not to do, what not to say, how to act, et cetera. Everyday should be Christmas – information is a gift from the brain and heart, concurrently.
“Let us keep Christmas beautiful without a thought of greed.”
– Ann Garnett Schultz
MAGNANIMITY
Heavy is the vocabulary word aforementioned. Magnanimous is an adjective to describe being very generous or forgiving, especially toward a rival or someone less powerful than oneself. My hero in life, Abraham Lincoln, possessed this word, ten fold, and over and over again showed it to be his biggest attribute as one of the greatest leaders that have walked this earth. There’s one thing to be generous with your information, with your gifts – there’s another to hold that power against someone. We often find this with officials and refs ahead of us, with coaches that have never seen us before, or players that make more money in one day then we will in a year. Having said that, giving doesn’t mean to expect anything – surely there’s been a Christmas gift that you gave someone, and they didn’t have anything for you. That shouldn’t change your approach in being generous – of being magnanimous.
“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you
want to test a man’s character, give him power.”
– Abraham Lincoln
NO $ AMOUNT
In the continuum of not expecting anything after giving a gift, sometimes gifts are intangible. These experiences that we speak of are often times invaluable. Sometimes, we get too bogged down to think that we will only officiate a game because we are getting paid for it. That’s impecunious – we must think and grow rich. Opportunities that don’t have a dollar sign attached to it, doesn’t mean that it’s not valuable. It often is so valuable, that it’s invaluable. Thinks of the opportunity, the gift if you will presented in front of you, not the $.
“The best things in life are free,
Now that I’ve discovered what
you mean to me.”
– Luther Vandross
This has been a gift to share this art and write on a website that’s thriving. I thank ya’ll rocking out with me. Merry X.
Until tomorrow.
