CHOICES MADE, ROADS TAKEN

We live with choices made, some we make, some made for us.

Who among us wants a voice? Who here asks a question and accepts the answer offered?

Most important, what is the question that needs an answer today, right now?

I’ll go first, since I’m the blogger authority here, and start with wrong questions.

“Why are you taking my freedom away?” Karen asked.

You’ve seen them in many guises getting fired up about wearing a mask. The Karen-lady gets over-excited, then angry; the Karen-man starts angry, then gets gets over-excited after he sees how is anger is received.

This is the question for Karen-man: Do you get as agitated at your kid’s games as you do when you get turned away from Costco for no mask?

Scene from a little league game:

The umpire is a kid about three years older than the players. He misses a few call. The parents start heckling. The opposing coaches criticize. Some drunk shits in the outfield see their chance to help.

And I’m the other coach. What to do?

First, give the drunk dads directions back to their cooler, then point the other coaches back to their bench. Neither group enjoyed being told what to do by a pointer.

Then I talked to the umpire and his mom, telling them to stay in the game and do the best they can. That was for the kid. For the mom I said, “Your kid has a lot of character to hang in there. Good job, mom.”

I didn’t add to the drama, which was ripe for the wrong approach, ripe for a fight in the infield. The other coaches deserved to be knocked around, the drunk dads banished, and the crappy fans gagged.

But that’s not how it works in youth sports. The goal is role modeling for the kids’ future behavior, and it starts with the first pitch.

Right now, if you get turned away some place for not wearing a mask, then that’s not your place. You don’t need to mark it with a pissy fit, big dog.

Scene from a dinner:

Wife and I got invited to a big dinner one weekend. It was at the house of a married couple who knew my uncle.

The wife was the sister of my uncle’s friend who had died. She invited eight of their circle of gay friends to dinner, too.

My wife helped the couple in the kitchen; I sat in the living room with the guys. We were all quiet until my wife came in and told everyone that I coached youth sports.

One after another the fellas told their coach story, the one about the mean coach, the bully coach, the degrading coach, the stupid coach, the petty coach, the ignorant coach.

Play real sports long enough and you meet them all. I sat in a room listening to the results of poor coaching and it wasn’t pretty.

The point I’m trying to make is you never know how a message is received by the person coached up.

If you think you have authority, you’ll know for certain if you make stupid suggestions and people take it as biblical law.

Scene from choices made:

If you remember Jack in this role, he was the one who couldn’t handle the truth. His truth was based on his experience as a combat commander in charge of hardcore Marines.

For most of us, our truth is based on choices made. For some choices come from informed decisions on an array of small things. After weighing opinions and evidence, we make the best call our brain can muster.

Or,

We plug into a convenient ideology based on social connections. For example, during an election year, choosing a political party is key.

Based on the impressions that arrive online and on-air, if you and your circle of friends and acquaintances are hateful racists, one party is more welcoming than another.

If you are a science denying hateful racist, then choices made, choices to make, get even easier.

A new voter, an age eligible legal voting citizen, and you’re choosing a political party for the first time, and you don’t want any outside influence, ask a few questions:

Do you see women as second class citizens sent to tend to your requests, who then wait for you to come up with more requests?

Do you see race in terms of inferior and superior?

Are you willing to expose yourself to the coronavirus and risk transmitting it to your mom and dad, grandparents, older neighbors?

Sort through the details of each party like an adult, because that’s who you’ve become. Your vote, your leaning, is as important as the biggest blow-hard on television, even if you keep to yourself.

The choices made today will define the road you take. You do have a choice. Make the correct one.