random musings

-I find myself sitting in an office ready for another day as my third year of residency is coming to a close in a week. Really? Yup.

-I find myself in a more administrative role as I move to my last year of residency. This is a great opportunity to be a servant as Jesus said in Matthew "And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant," but still I find difficulty that decisions that I make will make some happy and some frustrated. I simply would rather just make everyone happy and not have anyone upset at me...not going to happen.

-Last week Bekah and I joined the Plattner family on a lake in Michigan. One week without Internet and no work related activities. That is nice as I realized that the world will continue without me checking my email or facebook. I love vacation. The question is, do I go with the vacation where you go to a new spot and check everything out staying busy or just go to a familiar spot and veg out doing a lot of nothing? I am still debating. (Titus with his cousins).

-As I train for the Chicago triathlon I am discovering how difficult it really is to swim as swimming a 1/2 mile was one of the toughest things I have done. Another thing I have discovered is that there is a lot of trash in Lake Michigan. The other day I was convicted as I swam past an empty beer bottle and condemned the jerk who threw it in there in the first place. Yet God reminded me that I could pick it up instead of rolling my eyes and swimming right by assuming the clean up is "someone else's" responsibility and not mine. On a fundamental level by continuing to ignore the trash aren't I just like the dude that threw it in on the first basis?

-After the death of former UCLA coach John Wooden I started to read about him and realized that I have a new hero. That man was an amazing man. Here are a few things I learned about him (via Wikipedia):

1) Wooden remained devoted to his wife Nellie, even decades after her death. Since her death, he kept to a monthly ritual (health permitting)—on the 21st, he visited her grave, and then wrote a love letter to her. After completing the letter, he placed it in an envelope and added it to a stack of similar letters that accumulated over the years on the pillow she slept on during their life together.

2) Wooden has some great quotes:

Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.
Flexibility is the key to stability.
Be quick, but don't hurry

I have always tried to make it clear that basketball is not the ultimate. It is of small importance in comparison to the total life we live. There is only one kind of life that truly wins, and that is the one that places faith in the hands of the Savior.

If I were ever prosecuted for my religion, I truly hope there would be enough evidence to convict me.

3) He held to a Seven Point Creed, given to him by his father Joshua upon his graduation from grammer school:
Be true to yourself.
Make each day your masterpiece.
Help others.
Drink deeply from good books, especially the Bible.
Make friendship a fine art.
Build a shelter against a rainy day.
Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day.

Oh yea, and he won a lot of basketball games.

-As a Detroit Tigers fan I was obviously following Detroit Tigers' pitcher Armando Galarraga would have had have gone down as the 21st major league pitcher to throw a perfect game: no hits, no walks, no base runners, period. But on the last play, the very last play first base umpire Jim Joyce called the batter safe who was clearly out as Joyce later said "I was convinced he beat the throw, until I saw the replay." Galarraga took the miscall in stride as he gave Joyce the play card the next game and did not make a big deal out if it.

This reminds me of a quote by a former umpire Ralph "Babe" Pinelli when he was a rookie umpire who called a strike on the famous Babe Ruth. It is reported that Ruth challenged a call stating "There's 40,000 people in this park that know that was a ball, tomato-head." Pinelli shrugged as he responded "mine is the only opinion that counts."

As a believer in Christ I take confidence that no matter what others may say to or about me (rather true or untrue as I agree with Billy Graham when he advises others to turn your critics into coaches) at the end of the day I have a loving Father who loves me. That is the only opinion that really counts.