Its a Matter of Bounce

The next time someone says, "You can be anything that you imagine." Believe them. In fact, recently I realized that often the way you see yourself broadcasts what others can see in you.

There are lots of ways to imagine yourself. Some people see themselves as a project, pulled together piece by piece to build something they envision. Others view their themselves as a mystery story that unfolds minute by minute based on a string of clues. Usually, folks like that don't have a clue as to where they are going, or what they are about to do, but they enjoy being the main character. Others' perspectives vary as widely as imagination itself. In plain, for everyone, how you imagine yourself is up to you, and likely what you see is going to be you.

Well, I’m a rubber ball, not as fancy as the one in the photo. I am the simple kind used for handball or racquetball - a rubber, seamless sphere, only a few inches in diameter. I would say that I see myself as only a little over two ounces, but this is about imagination, not delusion. I

identify with that object because these days much of my time is spent in efforts to learn to bounce back. Spiritually, mentally, physically, there is a lot of ground to cover. In each area circumstances wrought by me or someone else slam me into walls...of doubt, of pain, of fear, of ignorance, and frequently weariness. As most people, I find myself in those conditions, but recently my goal is to emerge undefeated.

Most people do not give much thought to the wonder of that little ball. The ball itself seems a thoughtless object. Someone slams it into a wall, or an obstacle, with different levels of force. The sphere rebounds in ways that are unpredictable. The ball flies off the wall or other obstruction at random speeds and odd angles, which I accept and enjoy as a surprise. Often, when I hot a wall, I cannot predict what will come next. Do me a favor - if you know, do not tell me. I live for the surprise.

Now, mt life as a ball is not for everyone. I know that many people cannot stand the unpredictable. They want to know what happens next. They want to plan. When they see a ball like me, they ask ask questions like:

If you hit the ball at ground level toward the wall with a speed of 12 meters per second, at an angle of 20 degrees above the horizontal, how long does it take for the ball to reach the wall if it is 6.2 meters away?

Believe me, when you are the ball, the amount of time before you hit the wall becomes the least of your concerns. I am fascinated by how and where I and others bounce back. I am in awe at the variety of ways we come away from the obstructions in life. We lose a job. A better one comes along. Someone faces "ruination," and opens an opportunity toward an as yet unseen career. Money slides out the door, and walks right back in. Somehow, every day loss is replaced in a turn of events that renders the despair that once came with into unimportance, because being a ball is a lesson in love. The ball bounces again and again, because its nature is to endure hardship and rebound. The nature of a ball is resilience. In plain speak, it does what it does, because it exists., and so do I. Love teaches me to be patient, have faith, hope and endure, and through those things I live.

Its like the author of First Corinthians explains, “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” If I love God, I have to love what I am. If I truly do love myself, then it is little to ask me to be patient with me, to believe in me, to hope that what I want will be fulfilled, and to endure the rough patches along the way.

In the five months since I last wrote here, I have grown in the belief that love surrounds me. In fact, it surrounds every one of us, if you can believe it. That growth makes me affirm new habits. I will not panic and despair in the present. I await the future. I can do that because I believe that I my destiny is to loved, if only by God/ That is why the story of my life cannot have a sad conclusion. So, I choose to hang with whatever comes at me every day. When something slams me into a wall I pause, keep faith with my dreams, endure, and then find a way to bounce back like that ball. That will happen at different speeds and in different directions. Keep an eye on me. Await the surprise.