Managing the Off-Season
I discovered competitive horshoes last year.
Over the past few years, I've spent ten minutes each afternoon throwing horseshoes, about five times per week. I thought I had gotten fairly good. Then I moved to Marshallville.
I found out about a hoseshoes pitching club that meets in nearby Perry on Monday afternoons, and I joined them one day in August.
I quickly found out I wasn't that good! Out of three matches per night against a random opponent, I quickly found I was 'the least of these.' Actually, I improved a little each week and, with the help of my large handicap, I was winning almost all my matches by the end of September. And then the season ended.
We'll begin again in March. That's a long way off! What will I do until then?
I'll repaint my horseshoes, maybe blue with a couple thin white stripes. The cloth I use to knock the clay or sand off my 'shoes' will need to be replaced. The box I carry my gear in needs to be cleaned up a bit, I think.
Most of all, I'll practice. Well, of course I'll practice, alot. My club will see a much-improved Dennis this year. That handicap of eighty or so points will come down to the forties, hopefully. My backswing, aim, and the flatness of my delivery need to be so ingrained that the pressure of a tough opponent will have little effect.
Life is full of off-seasons, I think. As followers of Christ, we look for every chance to share something with others about our relationship with God, but not every day or week brings significant contact with others. What do we do between 'seasons?'
Just as a horsehoe player gets his or her equipment ready, we read our Bible and pray. We worship and study. Then, when the off-season is over, people may be surprised at who we've become. This new person they encounter might just change their life.
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