PRACTICE-PRACTICE-PRACTICE

The news is reporting all the football teams are beginning to practice for their coming season.  NO MATTER HOW I FEEL ABOUT THAT-SIGH~I will not be distracted from the purpose of this post and football season is NOT the nucleus of my thoughts (EVER).


 

Practice is an essential part of any sport.  MANY more hours are spent practicing than actually playing the game.  Cross country is an excellent example.  The runners practice year round except for a couple of brief breaks after seasons are over.  MILES AND MILES are run--daily--in all kinds of weather conditions--and on all types of terrain.  Top that with cross training and you spend at least a couple of hours daily--6-7 days a week for more than 11 months of the year preparing for a handful of races which all last--no more than 30 minutes each.




I practiced for 18 weeks each time I ran a marathon.  You cannot just decide to run a marathon and expect to show up the day of the race and finish 26.2 miles.  Unless you are some superhuman species, the muscles have to learn what you are going to expect from them and your head has to get prepared for the mental challenge of running that distance.  It would never have been possible without all those days of practice.  The same held true for each hiking trip we went on.  You cannot go climb a mountain without preparing yourself physically by practicing the ups and downs long before you step foot on the mountain.  Most physical endeavors require practice to perform at your best.



I practice writing each and every time I sit down and put a thought on paper.  During the quarantine, I began drawing.  With each attempt I was practicing the art so I would get better.  Practice also instills memories in not just our brain, but also our muscles.  We are learning what to do and how to do it by practicing the skill.


The last few minutes of the news are the real reason I watch the news most days.  No matter what horrible things are going on in the world, the news teams gives us a glimpse of a better world the last thing on the show. Recently I saw a special about a young boy who they declared was practicing compassion.  NOW if there EVER was anything worthy of practice--daily practice it is compassion.  And most of the time, we do not walk away from that practice drained, but instead energized.  One little act of compassion can lead to another and another--with practice we become addicted to the blessings of helping our fellow man.  

I cannot think of anything more worthy of practice than compassion.  What a beautiful world it would be if we all would only practice love and mercy daily.  There would indeed by glory--if we would only practice.


"God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them."

Hebrews 6:10

2 comments

Your comments keep my writing and often cause me to think. A written form of a hug or a pat on the back and an occasional slap into reality---I treasure them all!