President’s Corner
President’s Summer 2010 Report
I just returned from watching the initial game of a State Championship series for machine pitch baseball, watching the 8-year old son of a friend of mine play at a game with a history and sense of nostalgia beautifully and excitingly written over the past century and a half. It was pure enjoyment and took me gently away from my everyday routine and freed my mind to remember golden summer days in green ballparks in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. And at that point in time, I wished to be nowhere else. It occurred to me then that all of us should have more events like this in our busy lives.
So here is the gist of my President’s comments for this late summer month’s edition. Forget about the Association. Rather, do something on impulse. Do that one thing that you or your family continue to talk about, have been wanting to do, but just can’t quite get out the door to make happen. No grand two week trip to foreign ports of call is required nor is a cross-country excursion to visit the Grand Canyon, although I highly recommend both if time and money permits. But how about a spur of the moment visit to the zoo, the park or a museum. Perhaps a few hours spent walking in the mountains, or a slow magical ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway, or a day trip to the beach. What about a day off in the middle of the week for a trip to the lake, or a movie with the family, or a picnic?
While there is much to say about our Association’s activities, frankly I don’t feel like writing about them, and I doubt you’re waiting anxiously to hear about membership numbers, financial status and the like, at least not now. So you get a free pass but with it I would like to know that at some point during these two months, you have purposely put the newspaper, television, Blackberry, Facebook, Blog, Twitter, etc. aside, that you have left all these distractions at home and went looking for something special to do. With the assault we are all receiving from the media/information deluge that has us all wondering where the world is heading, what day it is and what happened to our time, we need a break. We need rebalancing to re-confirm the strength of the special bonds between us, our loved ones and our friends and to enjoy the basic wonder of our world.
This “Old North State” of ours is a special place, resplendent in its beauty and bountiful in its interesting, fun, and accessible things to do no matter[KAF1] [KAF2] where you live within its borders. Haven’t you in the last week read something in the paper or seen on TV and said, “You know, we/I should do that!” Well, what’s stopping you? Just put the keys in the car, or your feet on the pedals of your bicycle that’s been in the garage for the past 10 years, or lace up your walking shoes and head out the door. The world is just past the doorsill and is a great place to visit and it’s waiting for you.
Everyone of you reading this article would admit that being extremely busy is now a way of life. If so, then it’s time to do something to mitigate the speed, confusion, and stress of this digital age. You deserve a few moments or days for yourself. Even if what you do appears frivolous on first glance, if it is spontaneous, I have found it is usually meaningful in the long term. Folks it’s summer! Get your nose out of this magazine (after you have read the great articles inside, of course!) and go do something just for fun and just for yourselves. And, do it now! That’s an order.
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