In the Book of Awakening, Mark Nepo wrote, ” One key to knowing joy is being easily pleased.” So simple and true. A life lived unhappy with anything other than perfection is an unhappy life lived. If we can accept that life is not perfect, we just might find it is damn close.  

Children are masters at loving exactly what is. Everything they encounter is a treasure and their imagination makes it doubly pleasurable. Have you ever seen a child enjoy the box their gift came in more than the present itself?  

The first golf club I ever owned was a Wilson Staff 2-Iron with the shaft broken in the middle of the grip. I found it just short of the hazard in front of the second tee at Terrell Park in Beaumont Texas. No doubt, the damaged orphan was left there by a man who ruined his own day the moment the club helicoptered from his hand. A fellow with over inflated expectations of the results his lack of talent should have produced.  

Dad told me he thought we could tape the grip and it would work fine, “Just Fine”. I marveled that it was just my size! To me, the broken stick was so much more than that. First of all, it was a beginning; My own golf club! I hit imaginary shots with my new friend, careful not to cut my hand on the sharp edge of the creased steel. Every shot I pictured traveled straight and true. When a dove flew by, the club head quickly became the stock of a shotgun. I aimed the jagged end at the bird and my expert marksmanship brought it down. At each pond, the iron became a fishing rod. I made casts to waiting largemouth and caught one every time! Nothing could go wrong, I had a magic wand.  

I can still see the make shift grip Dad built with thin white tape. As soon as he was done, I begged Him to take me back to the course to no avail. It didn’t matter. I turned the neighborhood into Augusta National and Pebble Beach all in one. A tennis ball doubled as a Titeleist and trees became flagsticks. Twenty First street and the driveway were water hazards. It was beautiful! 

I hope whoever left that club experienced better days. After all, his trash gave me a treasure that lasted years. Thinking back to that old 2 iron, I’m reminded that loving the “perfectly imperfect” is a recipe for increased deposits in the International Bank of Happy. 

When things aren’t just so, think back to your childhood and that first Magic wand. Wave it and turn your front yard into whatever you’d like. Moments are just that, and they come and go. Try to smile when the grown up response would be to yell. I bet you’ll be pleased with your balance sheet. 

Enjoy Every Second

Will
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