We are into that time of year that I really enjoy. March Madness is upon us. I have been a college basketball fan for
about 30 years now. Today was selection
Sunday. With all the conference
championship games over the past two days culminating with the selection shows
this evening it was only fitting that ESPN presented a 30 for 30 film on the
1983 N.C. State team.
The film starts off with one of the teammates preparing for
the funeral of a fellow teammate and how that spurred the rest of the team into
gathering once a year. Hard to believe that
30 years have passed and looking at some of these guys and seeing how they have
aged made me think of myself as I am not much younger than them.
That story of that team with that coach is all very
inspiring. Growing up in South Jersey I
can relate to the personality of a Jimmy V.
I golf with a group of guys each week.
Each of them is old enough to be my father. One of them is younger than the rest and
perhaps the previous statement is borderline for him. Let’s just say he could
be an Uncle. His personality is very
similar to that of Jimmy V’s. He also
has been dealing with cancer for quite a few years now. He loves his wife, loves his kids, and loves
life. He could be two groups ahead of
you or behind you, but you can hear his laughter and his commentary all over
the golf course. His outlook is amazing
to me. He is a person of deep faith and
a good, quality man. During our “off
season” he moved to be closer to his kids and grand kids. I hope to see him a few times during this
year.
In this ESPN film, Coach K is quoted by someone to have said
that the 1983 story of N.C. State was just preparing Jimmy V. to be the vehicle
to carry the message of cancer, The V foundation, and the notion to never give
up. We can’t all be Jimmy V’s, but we
can take that message and take the notion of a dream and apply it to ourselves
and to others. Clips of Jimmy V.
speaking were spliced into this movie.
Not the famous ESPY speech, but probably a motivational speaking
engagement. In it, he told of being a
teenager and listening to someone tell an audience about ordinary people. He said the speaker told, “God must really
love ordinary people, because He made a whole lot of them.” And he went on to
say that “ordinary people are capable of extraordinary things.” Later in the film, Jimmy V. tells an audience
gathered for the 10 year anniversary of that amazing championship year that “it
has to be a dream first.” That “no
achievement can be made without first dreaming of it.”
I have my ups and downs in lfe, but nothing compared to
dealing with cancer. I suppose it is
true that if we all put our problems into a pile we would pull our own problems
back out. The past few years haven’t
been the best for me in some respects, but without my golf friend dealing with
his cancer I can’t say that I would have been able to put my problems into
their proper context and be in the frame of mind I am today. I may not be the best example of achieving
ones dreams, but I know I have God given talents. I believe in them and in myself to help
others. People ask me what I do, because
it is not as straight forward as Accountant, Lawyer, or even Plumber or
Electrician. I tell people I do marketing. I help businesses, professionals, and
individuals find their talents, discover their passion, and then market
accordingly.
Recently I found out
that an acquaintance of mine has fallen on terrible times and will likely be
homeless in a matter of weeks. If there
is ever a person that could benefit from not only my talents but also from this
film it is she. She has put up hurdles
in front of her that must seem to be 10 feet tall and made of brick. She cannot see things clearly or
objectively. I can relate. I have been
there with my own hurdles and at times have to do my best to reduce the size of
obstacles . When barriers are seemingly impenetrable,
one must refocus on their dream, find work-arounds, and start to believe in
their reality. It will not be a straight
line to a successful outcome. There will
be a set back or two. But continual
focus and incremental progress will make that dream come true. That 1983 team didn’t just happen. There was a 1980-81 team that fell
short. There was a 1981-82 team that
also fell short. Even the 1982-83 team
had a tough start.
I guess that is why I like college basketball. You get to see a program grow and
develop. Fifteen years ago could anyone
tell me where Gonzaga was located? But
over the years they have become a consistent team in the Tournament. That consistency along with a great season
culminated in them being a top seed this year.
There are your mainstays like Duke, UNC, and Michigan St., but you also
see the development of programs like Valparaiso and VCU. People need to view themselves as
programs. They need to look back over
their own body of work over the years, see where they have been, where they
are, and where they want to be.
Remember, Duke wasn’t always the Duke we know today. Yes they have had consistency for a good 25
years now, but that started some 30 years ago and the basketball program was
around long before then.
To sum up, it starts with a dream or a vision for what you
want for yourself and the mindset to never give up. Never ever give up.
