When You JUST Need a Win
Photo by Jeremy Sheppard on Unsplash
As my friends know well, one of my means of passing the time during the hibernation months here in Minnesota has been to watch a lot of professional basketball. And I can not stop watching and laughing at the video below from a recent Timberwolves game.
First, a bit of context.
The Timberwolves needed a win that night. Their best player was recently taken out with an injury. Their record has been suffering during this final stretch of what’s been a pretty promising season so far. Not many weeks ago, they were leap-frogging for a coveted high playoff seeding in their conference, and now they’re in a major sprint to the finish among a number of close competitors.
I didn’t see the whole game, but to read some of the recaps afterward, it just sorta seemed like everyone was out of sorts and letting the stress get to them. One of the team’s starters was ejected for the first time in his young career for two technical fouls before halftime. Another got kicked out of the game after body-checking Utah’s starting point guard, a former Timberwolf. There were shouting matches. People were losing their cool, and the Wolves lost the game.
Exactly when this happened during all of that mess I’m not exactly sure, but I can’t help but think that Nemanja Bjelica was feeling the same frustration with getting his jersey to tuck into his shorts properly that everyone else was feeling about getting what they wanted out of this season, too.
I mean, you can see it, right? Just f***ing do what I want already, will you? Followed by, F*** it, I’m dropping my pants. I have a job to do here.
So, what does an unexpected public pants-dropping have to do with you? Besides being funny (which is maybe all it needs to be), it's this:
If you’re not a pro athlete, but you’ve still been feeling kinda blah or irritated and thinking, “What do I have to do to move forward, pull my pants down in front of a national TV audience? Because I will.” -- you’re not alone.
If you’re into astrology, we’re just about to slide out of what Tracey L. Rogers refers to as classic Pisces season - a “sleepy period” characterized by fogginess, crankiness, uncertainty . . . you get the idea. Even if you’re not into astrology, if you’re into knowing what time of year it is, it’s the end of winter here in the northern hemisphere, and that's about all the explanation you need. We’re tired of darkness, shoveling, slow drives, icy walks, all that stuff - whether literally or metaphorically. We’re ready to pick things up again.
Like the Timberwolves, we’ve been marinating in our dreams for several months now, and it’s time to make things happen.
It seems like a lot of people in this moment in time are in a "Can I get a win already?" sort of place. Maybe it's the season, or maybe it's something else for you. Either way, it’s easy to isolate ourselves when the weather is cold and the work, for some reason, feels a little futile.
Try not to do that, okay? It’s good to take it easy when the season calls for it. Definitely be easy on yourself until the ice melts (literally or figuratively), but know that cutting ourselves off too much is a great way to lose perspective and get ejected from the game altogether. Call an old friend, send someone a text, share a funny video, do something that gives you a break, and go slowly so you don't break anything on the ice while you do it.
If a reiki session sounds like the ticket, we've got you covered. I can’t necessarily wave a wand and make it spring or make you clinch the #3 seeding in your conference. But if you need a win and it’s just not coming, what you CAN do is come on over to Be Well Natural Medicine in St. Paul.* We can drink warm tea, laugh about whatever ridiculous thing is dominating your existence right now, and deliver a little chi energy to your system to help you get through it with a little more grace. We'll help you keep your pants on until your time to win arrives. It will, I promise.
*If you don't live in the Twin Cities metro, that's okay, too! Remote sessions can happen from anywhere you live. Contact me directly to schedule.