Month: March 2012

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Be The Best.

731 and 924

Tiger Woods won a golf tournie today.

He’s won a bunch.  What’s the big deal?  First win in 924 days.  It led tonight’s sports report.

His personal life went south and even if you are a casual observer, you probably heard about the fall.

Our number today was 731.  That’s 2 years plus a leap day.

So hard to believe Chris has been gone from human form for 2 years.  So much has changed for all of us, including you…the reader.

I haven’t met anyone connected with this story who hasn’t been profoundly impacted.

Maybe it’s been Be The Best.

Maybe it’s been doing 10 push up per day.

Maybe it’s been taking a bit more time with family.

Maybe it’s seizing the chance to go on a vacation.

Maybe it’s been putting a dream into action through measurable goals.

Maybe it’s just remembering an amazing kid with passion that fuels us still today.

731 days.  We haven’t won a golf tournament…but I think we’re working hard to Be The Best and inspire others along the way.

I see it everyday.

Chris…we love you and miss you.

Always and forever.

Every minute, every second.

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Be The Best.

Good scary or bad scary?

I met a colleague today who happens to be a counsellor.

We had a brief conversation between the coffee shop and our next meetings.  He said something that has stuck with me long after this afternoon’s hallway chat.

We were talking about making big life decisions and he said, (paraphrased) if something makes you feel a bit scared, but good scared, go for it…if it makes you feel bad scared, stay away.  In other words, high chance behaviour like speeding in your car and texting is not good.  Taking a chance where the outcome is simply the flip of  a coin…not good.

BUT…taking a calculated risk that still makes you feel a little nervous, that’s good.  In fact that can act as fuel to push you forward.

Too many people,  he said, had told him over the years that as they hit 50, 60 and beyond, had wished they took a risk.

Nervous good?  Nervous bad?

Interesting thought for the day!

BTB.

Categories
Be The Best.

Langley wins Provincial Championship…and other stuff you should know.

When it comes to lacrosse, both field and box, Langley has always been close to the top and rarely at the top.

The boys, really young men now, that you see in the picture below have been battling for a gold medal for 10 years or more.

I watched a young Chris write down his goal, ‘Make the A1 Langley lacrosse team’.

Then I watched him work that goal.  Push-ups, eating right, practice, repeat.  Working and never quitting.

He made it.  The next goal was to win.  I watched him and his squad battle their hearts out to several bronze medals at the Provincials.  They were huge accomplishments, but the ride home was usually quiet.

He wanted the Gold.

When he won the bronze with Team BC at the National Box Tournie, it was again an amazing accomplishment but the gold still remained the goal.

A couple of Sundays ago on the fields at Burnaby Lake, Langley’s Tier 1 (A1) field lacrosse team won the Gold medal for the FIRST TIME IN LANGLEY’S HISTORY.

These were all guys that Chris had played with over the years and judging by the comments on Chris’ still very active memorial Facebook wall, he was with them on the field for the big win.

CONGRATS to all the players and coaches…and parents too!!  As I look at the picture below I see James, Michael, Brett, Eric, Ryan, Rhys, Riley, Will, Alex and more.

You all have battled for many years together and I know that Chris LOVED fighting the fight with you and I know he’ll be your wingman as many of you leave minor lacrosse and move forward with the next exciting stages of life.

This was a MEGA accomplishment and I know Chris will be beaming for a long time about this one.

You can read the full story in the Langley Times here. 

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Be The Best.

March

Yah, enough said.

March is upon us and as we head to March 25 it’s so very hard to believe Chris has been away from us in human form for almost 2 years.

This morning I looked at a picture on my bookshelf of Ingrid, me and the boys in Disneyland when they were about 7 and 5.

Chris is laughing so hard he’s almost falling off my knee.

I loved that trip.

As many schools head into Spring Break, I hope that you are able to find some time to do something memorable, fun and exciting with your family.  Whale watching, Science World, overnight to Seattle or even overnight in Vancouver are all easy local things we did.

As a young Dad I sometimes wondered about the expense of this or that.

Of course budgeting is important and we had to also live within our means, but if we planned to knock off a dinner out so we could spend money on a family day activity, that’s what we did.

When I see that laughing, smiling face I know that every cent was worth it. 

I would pay millions to do it again.