I told you yesterday that I'm into a relatively new television show called October Road. One of the things I like about the show is the group of five guys who still get together once a week to have a jam session. Nick, Owen, Ikey, Phil, and Eddie throw a CD in, pick up their tennis rackets, golf clubs (to simulate a bass guitar), drum sticks, and hair brushes and pretend to sing and play as if they were performing for thousands of adoring fans.
None of them have any aspirations of being a rock star though, or really of even playing an instrument. For them, their jam sessions are a release and they are pure fun. I love how unpretentious it all seems. These aren't a bunch of people hoping to become something they'll never be. They are just a bunch of friends enjoying an activity for the mere sake of it.
Up until the last few years, I've had a difficult time doing what these guys do. Whenever I got involved in something, like guitar for example, I always felt like it had to "go" somewhere. I think I missed out on opportunities to enjoy activities just for the sake of doing them. I don't think I was ever over-competitive or anything like that, but for some reason, I always felt like I was wasting my time if I wasn't engaged in something that I planned/hoped to take to "the next level."
But all of that changed when I began playing tennis again for the simple fun of striking a ball just because I can. I'm too old and have too many physical problems to ever really be competitive in tennis again, but I discovered that the game is just as enjoyable, if not more, when you play it simply because you love it. You can laugh when you try a ridiculous shot and miss it. You can smile when your hitting partner hits a miraculous passing shot. And you can feel just as good when you rip a winner down the line as you used to.
