spirituality – Page 2 – …my temporary assignment.

“Team Together”

“Standing at Hoop Camp watching my boys scrimmage. I overhear the coach in the huddle say “team” and the players say “together”. Makes my heart ache but at the same time fill full. If that’s possible😕‪#‎teamtogetherforever‬ — at Homestead High School (Mequon, Wisconsin). – Kira Chekouras Testin

Sometimes, an individual will come along that is the embodiment of a message.

Living a life – as conveyed through their thoughts, words and deeds – that is meant to share and teach some essential and lasting truths.

And individuals of that magnitude possess mass. And it is the specific gravity of them and their purpose that inevitably draws others toward them.

Like Coach Chekouras.

Both he, and what he still stands for – resonates.

Perhaps this is what Kira felt today at basketball camp.

….“cause Coach was there.

His message was certainly still reverberating through those coaches and campers.

Now someone once said that “every act creates a ripple with no logical end”.

A statement, I believe, is intended to describe the impact good – from a single point of contact – can exert on the world around it.

So just imagine the good of this individual. An impact of lasting resonance yet today.

Through not just one, but now, generational points of contact.

Years, and years and years apart.

Ripple, upon ripple, upon ripple, upon ripple.

Coach lived that message. And even today, he yet lives within it.

Remaining to this day, its embodiment.

Just ask those campers.

For it resonates within all of them.

“Team Together”.

(Coach Chekouras entered eternal life in 2006. I came across his daughter’s reaction to the players response at a Hoops Camp, and shared this initially in 2015. I came across it and thought it worthy of a re-share.)

Confluence

“As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives.”

– Henry David Thoreau

Maybe you have noticed a transformation.

Perhaps you are gaining a sense of this.

Feeling its tug. An awareness of gravity. How the mass of your collective thoughts, words and deeds have led you to this instant.

Impacting someone. Making something. Leading somewhere.

For they all matter. And even now, both they – and you – are still being shaped.

Taking all that you have been up to now – and making you into what you are to become. The embodiment of all that is the best in you; character, excellence, perseverance and leadership.

Your intentions then finally and irrevocably become reality.

A convergence of age, ability, experience. The confluence of discipline, desire and dreams. In something altogether new. That will stand alone. That will never happen precisely in this fashion ever again.

Long ago, each of you entertained the smallest germ of a thought. A glimmer of a dream.

At that moment, you decided. You chose a destination.

But a path was needed. Direction determined. A pace to be set.

You let go. Abandoned yourself for one another. Subservient for a greater good. Exerting the will to expend yourself in all aspects of your being. Succumbing to a level of self-discipline that ultimately created this extraordinary circumstance.

Creating a singular vision, originating from a common perspective.

“The soul attracts that which it secretly harbours; that which it loves; it reaches the height of its cherished aspirations; … and circumstances are the means by which the soul receives its own.” – James Allen

What your souls harbor is especially important right now. For as I speak, what you have always wanted is right there. In your path. Within reach.

The allure of what lay just ahead may be tempting. You might want to peek. To veer left a little. Or to the right. To get up on tippy toes to take a gander. To peer over the top.

Yet, you must not stray.

To look ahead is to leave this moment. Lifting one’s gaze up, around or under will skew your trajectory. A change in perspective will reduce focus. Obfuscate vision. Dissipate intention. Impede effort. Foster missteps.

You could lose sight of your path.

Distractions are apt to be abundant. Self induced. Born of doubt. Fear. Expectation. Anticipation. Yet focus is not meant to exist in the absence of distractions. It is a trait intended to exist in spite of them.

So just as you chose this path, you must now decide to maintain focus.

To honor your vision regardless of the situation. Committing to preserve that most singular and proper perspective. To abide by the very essence of discipline. Expending unparalleled levels of effort and persistence. Exerting uncommon character and leadership. Aspiring to the highest standards of attitude and attention.

To finish.

To relentlessly pursue excellence.

And succeed.

By setting a tone that rings true to your vision alone.

Converging on your path.

So that you all flow together at one point.

In this stand alone moment.

Expect it.

ex·pec·ta·tion noun \ˌek-ˌspek-ˈtā-shən, ik-\ : a belief that something will happen or is likely to happen

In certain respects, expectation is something beyond just simple belief that something may, is likely to or will happen.

To expect is to muster the forces – mental, physical, emotional and spiritual – necessary to produce a desired reality. To expect is an intention. To direct ourselves with purpose intentionally. To do, to be – and – to give our best.

The expectations we have and have set firm for ourselves – in the form of personal standards – represent intention.

A method of directing ourselves with a higher purpose towards all that we choose to be, where we choose to go and who we choose to become. In raising the bar high for ourselves, we are setting the tone that can carry us through life. Living our life with expectation can create an abundant supply of opportunity. An achievement rich environment where both present and even future circumstances will favor us, and in time, even bending to our will.

Having high expectations and personal standards affirms and reflects our true self and character. It displays our commitment to always and without hesitation “do” and “be” our absolute best.

In time, as we “do” and “be” our best, we will gain confidence and develop a sense of growing mastery. We will no longer feel the need to be so focused inward, but rather detect a tug to look outward. Beyond ourselves. And, to share. Then, we will be in a position to make a very intentional, personal statement with the utmost certainty.

To always “give” our best.

For in one sense, to “do” and to “be” our best represents only a beginning. Learning to “give” our best acts to connect us to some very powerful, lasting and positive thoughts in an entirely different realm of deeds. To be able to develop beyond a “do our best” mode of living and grow into a “give our best” way of being, we are raising that bar of expectation again, once more.

Establishing for ourselves a brand new standard. An expectation born of personal growth. One of sacrifice. A declaration that our original commitment to “do” and “be” has now become one of “to give”. That we will make the best of “what” and “who” we are readily available to all others. Anyone and everyone. No strings attached. Whenever, wherever, however. And therein lies the opportunity.

Giving the best of “what” and “who” we are shows others how much they are valued. Confirming to them how important their achievement and success is to each one of us. It shows them just how much they are loved. Telling them in no uncertain terms that “you deserve the absolute best of me“.

Giving our best to others isn’t about economics, transactions or a “quid pro quo”. Giving others your best is never about an expectation of getting anything in return. Giving your best to others is what you are made for. It is the right thing to do, for their sake and ultimately yours as well.

By giving your best, you are “coaching up” others to aspire to always do their best. In the process, you live and breathe that mindset of high expectation and standards. You gain a level of comfort operating within a personal universe marked by high expectations, a dedication to striving for optimal performance and pursuing excellence.

By giving our best, we allow others to share that same achievement-rich environment where both present and future circumstances will conspire to favor all, bending to our collective will.

Don’t merely believe that something may or will happen.

Expect it.

Trading up.

” My grandfather told me…”to accomplish anything worthwhile, you must pay the price.” My dad taught me that nothing in life would come easy. That I would have to work for those things that I wanted. But work cannot be narrowly defined in only a physical sense. Work is also a mental, emotional and spiritual endeavor as well.

As I grew up, I also came to learn and appreciate that achievement, excellence and success is not a matter of destiny, fate, timing or being in the right place at the right time. For that would mean that we live by chance rather than being guided by intention. To live solely by chance would negate the value and virtue of our effort and commitment. Our perseverance and sacrifice. And ultimately, our purpose.

I learned that in order to “be” or “become” – you needed to intend to “be” or “become”. To be purposeful in your thoughts, words and deeds. I found that to live with intention – and intentionally – is to be guided by purpose.

There will always be a price to pay if you live with intention. If you are purposeful in all that you do. You will have to “give up” to “go up”. You will need to leave some of who and what you “are” behind in order to get to where you want to go. To become what and who you want to be requires sacrifice. And this isn’t easy.

I can assure you that the suffering you encounter along the way – whether physical, mental, emotional or spiritual in nature – will be temporary. You are simply giving up comfort, familiarity and the certain in order to press ahead, grow and become what you were intended to be.

You are “trading up”. And after all, wasn’t that your intention? ”

Pastor Ellsworth Freyer

Location

In a conversation at work some time ago, the phrase “location, location, location” came into play.

Nothing to do with its inherent real estate connotation. But more so how one maintains a sense of presence in the real estate they happen to occupy in this moment. Not just where they find themselves. But more to the point, how they find themselves where they are now. Not in a week, month or year.

Now.

‘Cause when it comes down to it, if you aren’t here, then you cannot access what is to be gained from the moment. Not that each moment is going to be an epiphany. That is never the case. It is just that each moment has within it the capacity to become an epiphany.

A surprise. Never expected. Life changin’.

An epiphany.

It seems to me that there is a human tendency to believe that moments that seem a mistake, reflect a poor decision or turn out to be a failure are lost causes. A chance lost. Something not meant to be. Better left behind than kept, discerned and understood.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Everything we encounter in our lives has meaning. A purpose. A reason to be. And yet because things are not precisely what we imagined, we think all is lost. Wasted effort, commitment and direction.

We choose to leave the moment and place ourselves where we wish to be. A place begotten without the sacrifice, effort, discipline and effort. Then when we awake, and find ourselves at what seems to be the ultimate conclusion, we deflect, ignore, blame and avoid the outcome.

“Location, location location” has nothing to do with where you are. It has everything to do with being fully present where you are right here, right now. So that you can someday, become all that you were meant to be.

If you have the presence of mind and soul to capture and keep those multiple instances of missteps, defeat and failure, then you can access the wherewithal to maintain a presence in those moments yet to come.

And better yet?

Those made just for you.