SIMPLY LESSONS

Posted on April 14, 2023

Let us take out our binoculars and peer down the road, and simply be objective, not self-serving and visualize what would be good for America today and for future generations. America is at a crossroads, a fulcrum, a tipping point, between a democratic republic—freedom—and autocracy—control. As Americans, we each need to decide what type of country we desire; and what each of us can do to facilitate the strategic, competitive, common-sense battle with our principle global competitor, China. Some folks will pitch-in and make things happen; some folks will watch what happened; and some folks will wonder what happened.

In the hyperpolarized environment there are a bunch of tasks that need to get done: non-political voting rights management, technology building, inflation management, infrastructure maintenance and improvement, jobs creation, healthcare, childcare, immigration reform, countering systemic racism, women’s rights, LGBTQ rights, minimum wage, climate control, confronting home grown, white supremacy, terrorism, fair share tax reform, sanely evolving through COVID-19 and preparing for future pandemics, education re-tuning and funding, sane gun control, policing in communities, foreign policy, et al. As the two Japanese characters for crisis offer, with danger comes opportunity. The danger is continued and expanded division and autocracy…control; and the opportunity is to work on our unhealthy personal and collective issues, participate in interactive dialogue and coalitions, and get done what is good for all Americans…freedom.

An opinion is that cultic-tribal addiction—political party sorting—is simply unresolved discomfort within the emotional body, the unhealthy self, or as offered in Integral Life Practice: A 21^st Century Blueprint for Physical Health, Emotional Balance, Mental Clarity, and Spiritual Awakening (Wilber, Patten, Leonard, and Morelli, 2008, Boston, MA: Integral, page 41, 92-93),

…the shadow or dark side of the psyche, those aspects of ourselves that we’ve split off, rejected, denied, hidden from ourselves, projected onto others, or otherwise disowned…repressed unconscious…because we’ve pushed or pressed it out of our awareness, and unconscious because we are not aware of it…But the fact that we are not conscious or aware of the shadow does not mean that it has no effect: it just expresses itself through distorted and unhealthy means-or what is typically called neuroses…safety and security are sought by bonding together and identifying (fusing) with a tribe in order to persevere and protect against outsiders. Allegiance and admiration are given to the chief…emergence of a sense of self (ego) distinct from the tribe, although it often acts impulsively on behalf of its favored group.

Undoing and reintegrating this repressed and denied unconscious to improve our psychological health is process and is not easy; however, the work can free energy that has been spent shadowboxing with the self, making excuses, spinning, blaming, and telling stories. An initial step is simply a sense of openness and a commitment to face everything and fear nothing, just sit in the flames of the unresolved discomfort and give birth to penetrating insight and skillful means. We are simply witnessing the evolution of the human condition, and with patience, persistence, education, compassion, learning, and spirituality, we can move forward together, not further divided, and closer to autocracy, more lying, zero leadership, an orchestrated overthrow of elections, bypass of constitutional order, accelerated division and violence, racism and white supremacy, direction of a violent insurrection, and committed students of Vladmir Putin and his Ukraine disaster. Individually and collectively, we can grow common good, compassion, virtue, mindfulness, awareness, virtue, and self-restraint, and quiet the insatiable, unhealthy ego; and the dampening of anger, egotistical pride, jealousy, envy, doubt, ignorance, attachment, and fear can begin to free energy to nurture peace-of-mind and a sense of happiness and joy. Let us get this job done for all Americans, not just a select, partisan few. Casts, conflicting political messages, and deliberate, negative words that separate, attack, and divide are simply wrong. If open to the challenge, ready for the opportunity, and in need of a boost to get started: 1) In her Mindfulness Journal, Catherine Price recommends, Buy a pack of small stickers—any kind will do—and place a dozen or so around your home and office in noticeable places, such as your bathroom mirror, your computer, the back of your phone, the wall behind your kitchen sink, your alarm clock, or the cover of (your) journal. Every time you see one of these stickers, STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING, BREATHE, AND BE. 2) Locate a credible meditation instructor, learn to meditate, uncover the silent watcher, and resolve to create self-restraint. 3) Two questions for reflection: What unlocks compassion? What manifests happiness, joy, and peace-of-mind?

There are no regrets in life, just lessons! Today, it feels like the country is regressing. The country needs to evolve.

 

 

 

 

 

AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

Posted on April 7, 2023

O beautiful for heroes proved

In liberating strife,

Who more than their country loved,

And mercy more than life!

America! America!

May God thy gold refine,

Till all success be nobleness,

And every gain divine!

—Katherine Lee Bates & Samuel A. Ward, America the Beautiful

 Where has America The Beautiful gone! Daily, we are witness to absolute, chaotic disaster! And more will unfold as campaigns unfurl and as each self-serving TWEET is offered. “Nobody likes me!” It is embarrassing, frustrating, and disgusting!! Some words that capture the unrest: pay-offs, shootings, demonstrations, not objective, untrusted, self-serving, party sorted, low functioning, sociopaths, racism, white supremacy, deconstruction, and protection by political party sorted, power worldview associates of the Federal government institution and country. We must do better and begin the long trek to evolve America The Beautiful.

O beautiful for spacious skies,

For amber waves of grain,

For purple mountain majesties

Above the fruited plain!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee,

And crown thy good with brotherhood,

From sea to shining sea!

—Katherine Lee Bates & Samuel A. Ward, America the Beautiful

Some food for thought to help re-route the ship: Rachel Kleinfield and Aaron Sobel (USA Today, Friday, July 24, 2020, page7A) offer, “7 ways to reduce political polarization: Destroying the other side cannot be our goal.”

1. Call out your own party: speak truth to power and challenge your own tribe.
2. Avoid bad jokes: words matter, and they can perpetuate existing violence and cultivate preexisting grievances.
3. Make social media kinder: remove hateful messages, reduce the spread of hateful memes, and avoid prejudiced or polarizing speech.
4. Downplay the fringes and highlight the median: provide information that overturns party sorted beliefs and that reduces polarization. There may be less disagreement on policy issues than thought.
5. Emphasize disagreement within parties: most policy issues have a range of opinions within a party.
6. Help others imagine empathy: stories that encourage others to take the perspective of the other party can reduce prejudice.
7. Avoid repeating misinformation, even to debunk it: repetition leads the brain to think things are true; and there is a tendency to seek information that agrees with how one believes.

Partisanship is shaking the mighty pillars of our democracy; and destroying the other party is not a reasonable objective. The chaos, confusion, and disaster we see unfolding daily is about destroying the other group of human beings, the other tribe. As The Honorable John Lewis offered, get in “Good Trouble” and become a master of uniting. Whether Democrat or Republican America The Beautiful is the goal!!! Let us evolve together, not apart.

O beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years; Thine alabaster cities gleam,

Undimmed by human tears!

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee,

And crown thy good with brotherhood,

From sea to shining sea!

—Katherine Lee Bates & Samuel A. Ward, America the Beautiful

 

WOODY and BIRDY

Posted on April 1, 2023

For every shot the golfer needs to evolve a Ritual for creating a personal teepee where the mind becomes clear and quiet [Shoemaker, F. (1996). Extraordinary Golf. NY, NY: Pedigree] and the programmed subconscious is given absolute trust to deliver a shot. In 1929 legendary Bobby Jones remarked,

 The golf swing is a most complicated combination of muscular actions, too complex to be controlled by objective conscious mental effort. Consequently, we must rely a good deal upon the instinctive reactions acquired by long practice. It has been my experience that the more completely we can depend upon this instinct—the more thoroughly we can divest the subjective mind of conscious control, the more exclusion of all thoughts as to method—is the secret of a good shot…After taking the stance, it is too late to worry. The only thing to do is to hit the ball. [Gallwey, W. (1998). The Inner Game of Golf. NY, NY: Random, 19-20]

It could be argued that pulling the trigger to make the shot is the most critical of all elements of the shot cycle; and it may be the simplest, and yet, possibly the most difficult because it must be done without thinking and with absolute trust of the subconscious to perform to expectations. As we settle to create the space bubble—the state of quiet presence—we are deliberately breathing. The Ritual is automatic and is the one distinct stimulus that will trigger and coordinate all the elements that facilitate potential emergence of the peak performance state. We are empty, become one with the environment, the club, the ball and the target, and the trigger is absently pulled.

This evolving master skill is individually unique and is the state of being present, tension-free, with that which is intended, for as long as intended. [Shoemaker, F. (2007). Extraordinary Putting, NY, NY: Penguin, 8-10] Summon the inner artist for a remarkable and often indescribable zone experience of spiritual oneness; and be witness to freedom and an intuitive unleashing of a unique, creative, synchronous flow of human physical activity. Simply relax and put your awareness where your deepest natural breathing originates—sensed image approximately 1½ inches below your navel. Let breathing be deep and full, shake loose any tension in the muscles, and trust that as center is experienced—seamless unity of body, mind and spirit setting the stage for “sweet impact” and zone performance—well-practiced actions will result naturally without effort. A “quick and dirty,” Ritual checklist might include:

• Take a couple of deep, elevating breaths and visualize energy circulating between your feet and the earth below you. Feel static and dynamic balance and sense a balanced and solid foundation; and connect with the environment surrounding you.
• Take three-five short, explosive breaths into the upper chest to activate the sympathetic nervous system, increase oxygen and intensify subtle energy currents. Charge the whole body, physically and emotionally, preparing for the exertion to come: make a final visual touch of the target.
• Become one with the environment, the club, the ball, and the target. On an out-breath, one-pointed concentration on the point of impact of club with ball—mindfulness—channeling all body energies into a laser beam of relaxed, focused concentration, letting go of everything—self-restraint—and sensing the synchronous, flowing swing to impact with a ball creatively floating to the target—awareness.

Squeeze Trigger: With passion burning, the captain of the ship squeezes the auto-pilot button and trusts the programmed subconscious to creatively deliver a ball to an intended target.

A good athlete can enter a state of body-awareness in which the right stroke or the right movement happens by itself, effortlessly, without any interference of the conscious will. This is the paradigm for non-action: the purest and most effective form of action. The game plays the game; the poem writes the poem; we can’t tell the dancer from the dance. [Mitchell, S. (2006). tao te ching. NY, NY: Harper, viii.]

Don’t forget to check-in with Woody and Birdy Ball, Golf as Guru, www.johnedwindevore.com.

 

 

 

 

 

TRUMP SNAPSHOT

Posted on March 25, 2023

As the 2024 Presidential election unfolds; and as we witness the dark divide becoming wider, deeper, nastier, and darker, contrasting potential candidates for President is interesting. It appears the critical decision is to vote for the candidate who has a quality profile, i.e., is objective and not self-serving and decides based on what is in the best interests of America; is committed to common good, compassion, virtue, and integrity; and can best transcend and include others and consciously evolve a sane American culture.

How one chooses to “show-up” in the world can be critiqued by researching, examining, and witnessing talents, skills, and experiences; making observations; and scrutinizing character, personality, mentality, and interests. Let us take-a-look at Donald J. Trump.

Talents, Skills, and Experiences

A narcissistic drama-seeker who covers a fragile ego with a bullying impulse and has taken democracy to the brink. (Maggie Haberman, Confidence Man, 506) Life’s goal has been to gain and maintain position power, at any cost. Witness a track record of business and government failures, investigations and numerous lawsuits and absolute chaotic disasters: most consequential president in history; puppet of Vladimir Putin; foreign policy bullying, badgering, and destroying; abandoned allies; personal business endeavors with several bankruptcies; North Korean nuclear weapons stockpile doubled; pandemic management and leadership was non-existent-dereliction of duty, passed buck off to governors who became blame targets; enlisted foreign interference in elections (Russia and China); several obstruction of justice charges; impeachment proceedings; insurrection; multiple legal cases pending; accepts payoffs for positions; and has numerous Trump party cronies who are lost souls in search of a tribe and chief. No decisions are made based on strategic plans, strategies, goals, and objectives; makes decisions on how he feels at the time; can handle small projects and sign executive orders; not able to lead projects large in scope; selection of judges, environmental deregulations and deconstruction of institutions may be legacy; and immigration policy is inhumane. Is a master at using neuroses [The dark side of the psyche: denied, repressed, disowned and projected subconscious aspects of the Self.] to create stories (“fake news”) that strategically move the “lightning rod” from the Trump Party to others in order to trigger the psyche of perceived “enemies” and his base. Others become the personification of the wrongs and inexcusable of the Trump Party: Russian interference, Ukraine, racism, nativism, gloating, tax cuts for the rich, Supreme Court justices, bullying, outrages, fake news, etc., etc.  As Bernie Sanders has eloquently noted, “Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Trump golfs.” Accepting responsibility for anything is not his cup of tea. Just take him Diet Coke and wash his dirty laundry.

• Track record of complicating the story narrative, throwing sand in the eyes of the onlooker, claiming that transparently implausible stories were true unless proven otherwise, and denying the obvious truth.

Observations

Donald J. Trump is a genius at networking and using the media to recruit, retain, and fire, at will, addicted surrogates, circles of friends, admirers, celebrity hangers-on, and wannabes who savor and long for safety and security sought by bonding together and identifying with a tribe in order to persevere and protect against outsiders. Allegiance and admiration are given to the chief and clan. Mystical signs, conspiracy, and desires of powerful spirit beings must be followed for the continued safety and well-being of the tribe. Years of behaviors reveal the following:

• Does not understand duty, honor, and country.
• A cheat, a liar, a fraud, a bully, a predator, a con man.
• Racist, incendiary, toxic, casts hate, disruptive, name caller, and divisive, unfit for political office.
• Repeatedly has disparaged the intelligence of service members: Americans who die in war are “losers” and “suckers.”
• Deny, deny, deny; accuse, accuse, and accuse. The magic formula: D cubed—disease, disaster, division; and he continues to escape responsibility and being held accountable for anything by anybody.
• Tax cuts were a corporate “boondoggle.”
• Vision for country is merely to fix what his administration undermined, agitated, deconstructed, or destroyed during his time in office. Examples: intelligence, FBI, CIA, U.S. Postal Service, voting integrity, and CDC.
• Stokes fear, celebrity, and brand building; and show-photo opportunity is the foundation for his rhetoric. Is a stand-up comic.
• Staff selection of addicted surrogates has been a disaster and revolving door; and demands loyalty even if unethical, yes sir, no sir, no excuse sir; or you are fired.
• Surrounded by fixers and “yes men;” encourages rivalries and thrives on personal attacks.
• Protected by political party sorted, partisan, power worldview associates of the Federal government institution he and his cronies chose to deconstruct and destroy.
• Conspiracist (example QAnon) and guilty of political cowardice, blaming, passing the buck, and dereliction of duty; shirked constitutionally mandated duty and rewards misconduct.
• Sexist and multiple lawsuits and misconduct behaviors.
• Racist: a person who shows or feels discrimination or prejudice against people of other races, or who believes that a particular race is superior to another.
• Dishonest, arrogant, and narcissist; uses position and financial power for personal gain.
• Creates martyr complex, irrelevance, and distractions; misleads, boasts and is egotistical, promotes blamelessness of self, never wrong, and anxious to criticize.
• People mistakes and poor interpersonal relations skills.
• Lies, denies, blames, and spins; egotistical and self-serving; unqualified for the position.
• Having been President and playing golf reveal the real person: you cannot hide. Read Commander-in-Cheat.

Character, Personality, Mentality, and Interests.

• Low-functioning includes persons who “… do not exhibit polished and polite behaviors as a mask for their manipulations…may lack the education or interpersonal skills to control and deceive. Instead they might use threats, coercion, or intimidation to achieve their desired outcome.” (Source: Dr. Timothy J. Legg, “What Is a High-Functioning Sociopath?”, 5-28-2019, https://www.healthline.com, 1-3.)
• Narcissistic sociopath: one form of antisocial personality disorder and is the result of environmental factors such as a child or teen’s upbringing in a negative household that resulted in physical abuse, emotional abuse, or childhood trauma. (Sources: Mary L. Trump, Too Much and Never Enough, 2020, Simon & Schuster; https://psychcentral.com, Dr. John M. Grohol, “Differences Between a Psychopath vs Sociopath,” 5-20-2020, 1-5; Dr. Tarra Bates-Duford, “Psychopath vs Sociopath: 16 Key Differences,” 9-7-2018, 1-3; https://www.health.com, Rosie McCall, “9 Ways to Spot a Sociopath,” 10-4-2019, 1-7.
• Gangster, corrupt, and behaves as if above the law.
• A stale, nasty breath of death, hate, narcissism, chaos, fear, conspiracy, norm erosion, “dark,” institutional deconstruction, and neo-facism.

Partisan politics is a dangerous duel of limited and partial truths; and binds party sorted folks to fixed, literal or otherwise limiting beliefs and frames of minds. Political party sorted, addicted surrogates make obvious excuses for candidates and excuse the inexcusable with respect to virtue, morality, judgment, intent, behavior, actions, ethics, and laws. W. Edwards Deming remarked, “If a person is not performing as expected, it is probably because they are miscast for the job.” Michael Cohen offers, “No one ever tells Trump the truth about his behavior and beliefs, or the consequences of his conduct and ignorance and arrogance, in business or in his personal life and now in politics. Trump is the boy in the bubble, impervious to the thoughts and feelings or others, entirely and utterly focused on his own desires and ambitions.”

Donald J. Trump is a power-hungry gangster who is unfit to occupy the Office of the President of the United States of America. Examine and deeply reflect on his profile. As a country, we need a President who will lead the country, improve the country, and set the stage for future generations, not one who will continue to deconstruct the many institutions that are the foundation and pillars of the America Americans desire.

EVOLUTION

Posted on March 17, 2023

As each day flies by and the media gamesmanship and circus of the 2024 Presidential election unfold, the hidden message is that type of government will remain on ballots. Yes, we will be casting votes for candidates who represent a form of government, either continued democratic republic or autocratic. Autocratic offers one party, position power, dictatorship, corruption, money for a few, racism, white supremacy, chaos, anger, division, tribalism, fear, and civil war. Democratic republic offers two parties, earned power, leadership, stability, inclusion, equality, common good, choice, freedom, compassion, health, wellness and wellbeing and quality in all we are and in all we do. A single party, a Party of the People, may also be an evolving option.

The Democratic Party needs new leaders and leadership with a revolutionary vision for the Party’s future. Today it feels like the Party is in a quagmire attempting either to cater to uber-capitalism or to improve the lives of most of the American people. The result: too many working-class citizens have given up on democracy and elections because they do not believe either party is working on their issues. Whether you are a Red Stater, Blue Stater, Republican, Democrat, Independent, or do not care, this author has grown to appreciate the helicopter, global perspective of Independent Senator Bernie Sanders. In his It’s OK to be Angry about Capitalism, he offers that the Democratic Party needs to evolve a strategic objective of being the Party of the People with strategies (Sanders, 290-291) as follows:

1. Transform the Democratic National Committee from a corporate-dominated fundraising apparatus into a source of support for grassroots activism and working-class struggles.
2. Make certain that primaries are open, fair, and well run.
3. Democratize the nominating processes. Party bosses, campaign donors, and officials should not be able to tip the balance of Democratic National Conventions against candidates that have won majority support in the states.
4. Restructure debates between contenders for the presidential nomination so that they are serious examinations of the issues.
5. Make conventions genuine convenings of the party membership, as opposed to choreographed media spectacles. Delegates should be empowered to write platforms that address the needs of the country, and to engage in open and respectful debate on those issues. Then those delegates should head home with the resources and the support that will win elections and give meaning to the process.

A helicopter, birds eye view offers a perspective of what America needs for working folks. Catering to uber-capitalists and continuing the polarized political shows and hate slinging side steps issues that can really make a difference in the lives of most of the population. In addition, the question that unfolds quickly is what our choices will do for the youth and generations to come. Experience offers that whether one is a Red Stater, Blue Stater, Republican, Democrat, or Independent, one’s judgements can be altered because of the individual or his-her party as opposed to appreciating and understanding the depth of an experienced based perspective. Let’s work on issues that make a difference in human lives and not spend time looping conversations that reinforce polarity and division of a beautiful country.

FREEDOM

Posted on March 11, 2023

What does it mean to be free?

Buy, buy, buy. Spend, spend, spend. Market, market, market. Buy, buy, buy. Spend, spend, spend. It is never ending and creates stress, stress, and more stress. And debt, debt, debt, and more debt. And more stress, stress, stress, and more stress. Because we humans can become addicted and enticed to buy stuff, the economic system and uber-capitalism continue to exist, and will continue to exist unless one can build the mindfulness, awareness, and self-restraint to control spending. As Bernie Sanders eloquently offers,

The very existence of a rapidly expanding billionaire class in the United States is a manifestation of an unjust system that promotes massive income and wealth inequality. In this system, the people on top enjoy lives of extraordinary privilege. They possess more of the planet’s largesse than they could burn through in a thousand lifetimes. No luxury is beyond their reach. They are so phenomenally rich that they can spend their fortunes buying “experiences”— like a rocket trip beyond Earth’s atmosphere. While an exceptionally wealthy few wallow in affluence and become exponentially richer with each passing day, the majority of Americans live lives of quiet desperation. They’re not scheming to pay for trips to outer space. They’re struggling to pay for the necessities of life here on earth…The very existence of billionaires is not just about who has the money and who doesn’t. It is also a manifestation of a corrupt political system, in which immense power over the lives of a great mass of Americans is concentrated in the hands of a small number of people who—through campaign finance arrangements that only be described as bribery—buy control of our elections and the policies that extend from them…There are the Wall Street investors and corporate CEOs who determine whether jobs will stay in this country or go abroad, what kind of incomes working people will earn, and what the price of gas, prescription drugs, and food will be. And while these oligarchs exert enormous influence over our lives, ordinary people have virtually no power, or even the concept of power, in shaping the future of the country. They lack the institutions to exert influence, and they’re too busy just trying to survive…There is something profoundly wrong…when massive corporations, controlled by the wealthiest people on earth, lie, cheat, bribe, and steal in order to make profits that are funded by the destruction of lives, our environment, and our democracy…This country has reached a point in its history where it must determine whether we truly embrace the inspiring words in our Declaration of Independence, “that all men are created equal” and “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.” Or do we simply accept that we will continue to be ruled by a small number of extremely wealthy and powerful people who are motivated by greed and could care less for the general welfare?…Under uber-capitalism, where the rich and the powerful make the laws and shape the culture, their behavior is rarely if ever considered to be illegal—let alone punishable. (It’s OK to be Angry about Capitalism, 97-100, 108)

And these rich folks pay politicians for policies that facilitate economic systems that maintain their “the gold is mine rule,” and lying, cheating, and stealing are OK if you can get away with it. As 2024 campaigns are rolled out, we have a great deal to get done. Whether you are Democrat, Republican, Independent, Red Stater or Blue Stater, or do not care, let’s select folks who have clear programs for change and evolution for generations to come: get money out of politics; guarantee voting rights; make the Constitution relevant to the twenty-first century; abolish the electoral college; rethink the United States Senate—states with more folks = more Senators; re-think the United States Supreme Court—unacceptable and anti-democratic that a handful of unelected lifetime appointees exert the kind of political power they do; revitalize American media—increase funding for public, non-partisan, non-profit media at the national, state, and local levels; end all forms of bigotry—racism, anti-immigrant xenophobia, sexism, homophobia, and other forms of bigotry; treat workers’ rights as human rights; democratize the future of work—Technology can have positive and negative impacts…ensure that workers-not just tech-company CEOs-enjoy the benefits of progress; healthcare is a human right… Medicare for All; a new business model for the pharmaceutical industry—industry that is 100 percent engaged in research and development to discover…cures, not one that spends billions on lobbying, campaign contributions, and advertising in order to maintain huge profits and CEO compensation packages; protect our children—paid family and medical leave…classrooms are not crowded and teachers are properly paid; protect the elderly and disabled; increase Social Security benefits; provide affordable housing for all; break up monopolies; make billionaires pay their taxes; save the planet; and change the Democratic Party from being a corporately dominated party to a working-class party fighting for change—attract young people and regain support of the working-class. (Bernie Sanders, 2023, It’s OK to be Angry about Capitalism, 267-278)

Again, whether Democrat, Republican, Independent, Red State or Blue State, or do not care, this is America. Let freedom ring loud and clear!! Lots of work to do!

 

 

 

RELAXED CONCENTRATION

Posted on March 4, 2023

Golf is a simple game, yet tough to play! And sensing a oneness experience with the environment, the club, the ball, and the target; and visualizing the ball at the target are difficult assignments. W. Timothy Gallwey’s concept of “relaxed concentration” captures the essence of a necessary “simple, happy golf” skill,

There is one master skill underlying the myriad of specialized skills required to excel at anything. I call it ‘relaxed concentration,’ and I call it the master skill because with it one can learn to improve any skill, and without it, it is difficult to learn anything. It is not easily defined or taught, but it can be learned and even successfully coached. Everyone has experienced the state of relaxed concentration at one time or another during moments of peak performance or experience. In those spontaneous but all too elusive moments of heightened alertness and perception, actions seem artlessly excellent, and life seems simple and whole. Even in complicated, demanding situations, the effort needed is clear and actions flow out of us that are uncannily appropriate. Golf shots are made as if they were the easiest ones imaginable, and we wonder what we ever thought was difficult about the game. (Gallwey, The Inner Game of Golf, 19-20)

In 1929 legendary Bobby Jones offered,

The golf swing is a most complicated combination of muscular actions, too complex to be controlled by objective conscious mental effort. Consequently, we must rely a good deal upon the instinctive reactions acquired by long practice. It has been my experience that the more completely we can depend upon this instinct-the more thoroughly we can divest the subjective mind of conscious control-the more perfectly we can execute our shots…That intense concentration upon results, to the absolute exclusion of all thoughts as to method, is the secret of a good shot…After taking the stance, it is too late to worry. The only thing to do is to hit the ball. (Gallwey, The Inner Game of Golf, 171-172)

Dr. Michael Lardon comments,

…the Zone in its simplest form is a paradoxical state in which great physical feats are accomplished while the mind is empty and still, analogous to sitting in the cinema just waiting and watching for the movie to begin. It is a place where you can almost access an unlimited source of power and often realize your potential. (Lardon & Leadbetter, Finding Your Zone: Ten Lessons for Achieving Zone Performance in Life and Sport, 39)

Barry Green suggests,

Inner Game techniques can reduce the efforts of self-interference and guide us toward an ideal state of being. This state makes it easier to perform at our potential by rousing an interest, increasing our awareness, and teaching us to discover and trust our built-in resources and abilities. It is a state in which we are alert, relaxed, responsive, and focused. (Green, The Inner Game of Music, 23)

Lao-tzu’s wisdom is clear, concise, and complete:

We join spokes together in a wheel, but it is the center hole that makes the wagon move.

We shape clay but it is the emptiness inside that holds whatever we want.

We hammer wood for a house but it is the inner space that makes it livable.

We work with being, but non-being is what we use. (Mitchel, Tao Te Ching, 11)

Let’s take a look. After typical shot preliminaries—relaxation techniques, target selection, checking the lie of the ball, planning strategies for wind direction and strength, estimating distance, and making the club selection—a sample pre-shot routine and ritual might look as follows:

1. Stand behind the ball on the ball-target line and make practice strokes to clear a busy mind and subconsciously program the swing necessary to move the ball to the target.
2. Walk to the ball along the ball-target line mentally embracing the club, the optimum swing, the target, and the ball arriving on target.
3. Go to the breath to activate awareness. Focus on the in-out breath and begin to quiet the mind, release tension, and create space for awareness. Swing thoughts evolve to become only passing thoughts. As deliberate, deep breathing continues, the golfer is focused.

• Grip. Hands act as a single unit, not too loose and not too tight.
• Aim. Parallel flow lines of feet, knees, hips, forearms, and shoulders are aligned parallel with ball-target line.
• Set up. Fine-tune ball position, stance, and posture; square clubface and dance to feel static and dynamic balance. Energize passionate intent to put the ball at the target, sensing a spiritual relationship with the environment, club, ball. and target. Visualize the ball at the target, sense presence and awareness, peace-of-mind, and ball at the target.
• Trusting the well-programmed subconscious, on an outbreath, pull the trigger!

Celebrate and have fun!!

UKRAINE WAR

Posted on February 25, 2023

For reflection on the one-year anniversary of the Ukraine War.

Love is a language we all speak, and because of love, we have hope! And it is no secret that we humans have evolved yet have growing up and more evolving to do. Position power, money and unhealthy ego certainly do not offer nourishment for common good, compassion, virtue, helping others and caring about others. The Ukraine War reminds of kids on the playground scrapping about using a teetertotter.

The Ukraine War is simply unnecessary death and suffering caused by lack of wisdom and a thirst for front page publicity and storybook fame. President Vladimir Putin’s decisions border insanity and ridiculous. Thich Nhat Hanh[1], a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, who recently passed away (1926-2022), offers guidance and counsel:

In the case of a society, take the situation of a country suffering war or any other situation of injustice. Try to see that every person involved in the conflict is a victim. See that no person, including all those in warring parties or in what appear to be opposing sides, desires the suffering to continue. See that it is only one or a few persons who are to blame for the situation. See that the situation is possible because of the clinging to ideologies and to an unjust world economic system which is upheld by every person through ignorance or lack of resolve to change it. See that two sides in a conflict are not really opposing, but two aspects of the same reality. See that the most essential thing is life and that killing or oppressing one another will not solve anything.

The Ukraine War is simply the creation of fear, suffering and death to maintain perceived power and legitimacy, to establish a “perceived empire,” and to pursue a dream “— greatness of the “new” Soviet empire —” that can never exist. Concerning Thich Nhat Hanh’s advice and counsel, Martin Luther King, Jr., offered, “Thich Nhat Hanh’s ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity.”

A personal sentiment for a strategic objective is to have a democracy that is measured, evaluated, and incented based on achievement of common good. This is an overwhelming task when one climbs into a satellite and looks around. There are millions of global citizens with inner consciousness, psychology, purposes, values, goals, objectives, physics, biology, and neurology. There are myriads of families, collectives, cultures, groups, and communities with music, art, political values, and connections. And there are multitudes of institutions, social systems, economies and environments. In today’s diverse, politically sorted world, integration is certainly not an easy task! Where does one start to create processes that are measured, evaluated, and incented based on contributions to the common good? Reminds of a jig saw puzzle. Perhaps a nice place to start is with a definition of common good.

“In philosophy, economics, and political science, the common good refers to either what is shared and beneficial for all or most members of a given community, or alternatively, what is achieved by citizenship, collective action, and active participation in the realm of politics and public service.” (Wikipedia)

Today, it feels like human chaos rules; and he-she who creates the greatest chaos rules and becomes today’s distraction from what needs to be done. President Putin and his cronies will continue to have the same assortment of candies and perks while Ukrainian citizens suffer, Russian citizens suffer, and global citizens suffer. The Ukraine War is wrong! Absent mindfulness, awareness and self-restraint, people, events, and places are simply distractions that mask the need for action to hasten the journey to common good. Nice reads are Thich Nhat Hanh’s The Miracle of Mindfulness, Lotus in a Sea of Fire and Creating True Peace: Ending Violence in Yourself, Your Family, Your Community, and the World. Authentic joy can evolve with peace-of-mind and connections and purpose created on a foundation of compassion, gratitude, trust and hope, certainly not war.

[1] Thich Nhat Hanh was a peace activist, prolific author, poet, and founder of the Plum Village Tradition, the foundation of Engaged Buddhism. Known as the “father of mindfulness,” Nhat Hanh was a major influence on Western practices of Buddhism. (Wikipedia) A portion of his ashes have been ceremoniously scattered in Plum Village, France.

ETIQUETTE

Posted on February 17, 2023

Reflecting on golf course etiquette reminds of the green on hole number one at Orchard Hills Country Club, Bryan, Ohio. As an eight-year-old, it was the beginning of a great day playing golf with Dad. Dad was putting for a birdie and the author was behind the hole astride Dad’s putting line. Dad bellowed, “G#* John, get out of my putting line!” Yes, Dad was a stickler about course etiquette; and his passion for courtesy on the course is alive in the author today.

Practicing course etiquette respects the legendary core values and guiding principles of the game. Nothing is more frustrating than playing with a golfer who has not taken the time and opportunity to become familiar with course etiquette, the spirit of the game, safety, putting green courtesies and mindful control of disturbance and distraction. Golf coaches, including Dad, always counseled as follows:

• Live the spirit of the game with integrity: be courteous and considerate of others, count all strokes and play by the Rules. Unless stated in local rules or agreed to before teeing off on the first tee, players are not allowed to improve the lie of the ball on fairways or in roughs. You are on your honor to include penalties for grounding your club in sand traps and out-of-bounds, accidently moving the ball and hitting another player’s ball on the putting green.
• Prior to teeing off on the first tee: 1) discuss and agree on any special rules for this particular game—mulligans, strokes given or received and changing to a clean ball on the putting green; and 2) flip a coin or tee for honors on the first tee. Honors on subsequent tees go to the player with the lowest score on the hole just finished. In the event of a tie, honors revert to the winner of the preceding hole.
• Avoid standing close to or directly behind the ball when a player is about to play; and do not disturb play by fidgeting, moving, talking or making unnecessary noise. Noisy electronic devices need to be shut off before arriving at the golf course.
• When a player drives a tee shot out-of-bounds, a nice gesture is to invite the player to take a short break, get composed and not play another ball until other players have played. Play safe: warn greens keeping staff who may be in danger and shout “fore” when there is danger of hitting someone. When other golfers are ahead of you wait until they are one full shot ahead before you shoot.
• Repair divots on tees and in the fairway: a good practice is to use sand-seed mixture to repair divots on tees and fairways.
• Observe golf car movement signs.
• Always enter and leave sand traps on the low side. Rake footprints and sand divots in bunkers. Replace the rake in the bunker on the side away from the pin with the handle to tee.
• The player closest to the pin tends the flagstick for other players as they desire. The player whose ball is furthest from the hole putts or shoots first.
• On the green, when you are closer than other golfers, properly mark your ball with a golf ball marker. Players are on their honor to replace marked balls as precisely as possible. Loose impediments can be removed from your putting line; and fixing ball marks and green damage on the line-of-putt are permissible.
• Do not stand on another player’s line-of-putt or directly behind the hole when he-she is making a stroke. When someone else is putting, other players should stand well out of his-her line-of-putt and field of vision; and these golfers should be aware of where their shadows are falling: shadows should not be allowed to cross the putter’s line-of-sight and, if possible, should be kept out of his-her peripheral view.
• Prevent unnecessary green damage. Do not: drag, twist or scuff your golf shoes; place golf bags on the green; pull golf carts on the green; drive golf cars on the green; stand too close to the hole; use club heads to remove the ball from the hole; or lean on clubs on the green or when removing the ball from the cup. Repair green damage caused by golf shoes or ball marks with either a tee or divot tool. When removing the flag stick, carefully lay the pin on the fringe of the green.
• Wait on the green or green fringe until all players hole out; and move away from the green as a group.
• Record scores on the way to the next hole.

Hit ‘em high and straight, don’t miss three-foot putts and count all of your strokes. As Sir P. G. Wodehouse offers, “To find a man’s character, play golf with him.”

PACE of PLAY

Posted on February 10, 2023

Slow play is a challenge and an opportunity in golf. A slow golfer can ruin the day for players who are behind; and in the interest of other golfers, players need to make a commitment to play at a reasonable pace. As an added variable in the pace-of-play equation, the number one revenue producer on golf courses is greens fees. Course management has an obligation to respective boards or management teams to fill as many tee times with foursomes as are available. From this perspective, pace-of-play becomes a total team effort between golfers and course management. Some pace-of-play concepts to learn and practice are as follows:

PLAY “READY GOLF”

• When ready to make a shot, and it is safe, shoot.

COURTESY

• Watch the shots of playing partners to facilitate locating golf balls for next shots.

ON-THE-TEE

• To facilitate ball identification, let other players know the name of the ball and the ball’s markings you are playing.
• Be ready to play when the fairway or green is clear.
• Choose the set of tees that fits your game.
• Shorter hitters should hit first.
• Carry an extra ball, a ball marker, a divot tool, and a few tees in your pocket.
• If it appears that your original ball may be difficult to find, it is a good idea to play a provisional ball.

IN THE FAIRWAY or ROUGH

• Hit when ready and safe.
• Drop your cart partner off for their shot and drive to yours.
• If another player is walking to their ball and you are ahead of them, make your shot.
• Take multiple clubs to your ball and hit without delay.
• Before reaching the green and having double par, pick up, place ball on the green and putt to hole out.

ON-THE-GREEN

• Before going to the green with your putter, golf cars, pull carts, and golf clubs need to be parked or placed between the green on which you are going to putt and the next teeing ground.
• The first person on the green tends the flag and watches for and retrieves clubs left on the green when leaving the green. When putting is complete, be ready to pick up and replace the flag. To prevent lost golf clubs, a good practice is to place the short game clubs you have used on the green between the flag and your golf car, golf cart, or golf bag.
• Study and line up your putt while others are putting.
• When practical and acceptable with playing partners, continue putting until holed out.
• If a partner has a sand shot, be prepared to help with raking.
• Leave the green immediately after holing out and proceed to the next tee.
• Bag your clubs and complete your scorecard at the next teeing ground.

ON PAR 3 GREENS

• Upon reaching the green, if the group behind you is waiting on the tee to hit, stand in a safe area and have the group hit.

WATER BALLS

• If your ball goes into a water hazard and is accessible, take the time to retrieve only your ball.

LOST BALL

• Limit search for lost balls to three minutes. If pressed for time and the next hole is open, wave the group behind through.

Be your own best pace-of-play coach by identifying the ways you can pick up the pace-of-play.

Rules of Golf, Rule 5.6b, tells us, “When it is the player’s turn to play:

• It is recommended that the player make the stroke in no more than 40 seconds after he or she is (or should be) able to play without interference or distraction, and
• The player should usually be able to play more quickly than that and is encouraged to do so.”

Go to www.usga.com to learn about USGA pace-of-play programs, insights, and suggestions.