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Friday, February 1, 2013

The Secret Spring Training Teaches About Life



On February 1st, if you ask the average person to name their favorite February holiday, odds are you’ll get plenty of votes for Valentine’s Day or the long President’s Day weekend. Ask a true blue, red- blooded baseball fan that same question and expect an emphatic, “No brainier—it’s the day the pitchers report!
Ah, spring training.
If you are not a baseball fan, you may not know that spring training is an annual ritual when major league baseball players dig out the gloves and spikes they packed away last fall and migrate from their hometowns to the warm climates of Florida and Arizona to practice for the upcoming baseball season.
It doesn’t matter that many of these guys are baseball’s seasoned superstars, guys like Jimmy Rollins,  Derek Jeter, Roy Halliday—guys who make mega-millions, have won gold gloves, shattered hitting records, or pitched perfect games.
Why do they show up for practice year after year? I suspect they’ve learned a secret about the game of baseball that applies to the writing life-and life in general, too.
There was a time when I believed being a good writer meant the ability to sit down with pen and paper, or keyboard, and produce a great work on the first attempt. Boy, was I naïve. Years of honing the craft of writing have taught me that writing is less about penning the perfect first draft and more about rewriting, editing, rewriting again, and editing some more.
Good writing is all about practice and do-overs. In writing and in life--just like in spring training—you have to keep showing up and practicing to stay on top of your game.
The pitchers report this year on February 12th and by early March the infielders and outfielders will show up for practice, too.
Like those baseball players and me, are there things you’ve spent a lifetime mastering only to learn, you have to keep showing up and practicing, too?

12 comments:

  1. Super Bowl is another holiday according to some ;)

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    1. guess you can tell I'm not a diehard football fan!

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  2. I think "parenting" is one of those things I still have to practice. Giving birth to my first child, my daughter, didn't automatically make me a great Mom. Even after almost 19 years and three kids, it is something I still practice, wish I could re-write and edit some things and I keep showing up because it is the most important thing in the world to me and there are three amazing kids who are counting on me.

    Claire

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    1. Claire, I agree, can't think of a more important job.
      you have 3 great kids so your practice pays off!

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  3. Thanks for the reminder that Spring is coming! That's why I love the day pitchers report, because baseball means Spring to me. I find I have to keep showing up and practicing at everything from surfing, to listening, to writing. If we're still alive, we're still practicing.

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    1. If we're still alive, we're still practicing.

      Sooo true

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  4. Nice piece with a nice lesson. :)

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  5. Hi Carol- great post. I remember naively thinking that I should be able to write what I wanted the first time too. However, now I realize I am really quite good at editing. :-)

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  6. Carol, What's not to like about "practicing" baseball? It has always been my favorite game to play, though I haven't picked up a bat or glove in far too many years. Writing, music performance, and all sorts of things benefit by practice. The best writers always tell you that they write every day, just like a real job. It's not a magical talent that just shows up on demand. And like baseball and writing, the best players enjoy the practice as much as the game.

    Chris

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  7. Thanks for the great post. Makes me want to read [and watch] 'The Natural' again.

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    1. Thanks Jasmine, I'd forgotten about The Natural. Now, I want to watch it again, too!

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