Coaches Corner – by David Frank
Fleet Feet, Fleeting Moments & Fantastic Philosophy
I have a friend who considers himself a public relations guy, but that’s just his day job. In real life, he’s a philosopher. This shouldn’t surprise anyone that knows him since he’s also a runner. The more I run the more runners I meet. The more runners I meet the more philosophy I learn. While we may be of different sizes and speeds there is a little Nietzsche, Aquinas and Rousseau running through all of us.
Most recently my friend was philosophizing on the “woulda-coulda-shouldas” in life. He reminded me that all of our experiences are filled with simple twists of fate. In particular he was discussing the events of happenstance that got him involved in this sport. Somewhere early in his teen years his high tops wandered over to the cross country team with him skeptically in them. Quickly, those high tops gave way to proper training shoes and life defining moments. The challenges that were endured, the self discovery that was learned, and the spirituality that was engrained are gifts of this sport each one of us can relate to. He looks back on those early experiences with pride, humility and much gratitude. He feels sorry for those that went in other directions; especially those with much more talent who never got the most out of their gifts.
Non-runners often ask me THE proverbial running question: why do you run? The answer for me is easy, although it wasn’t always. “Because I can!,” I tell them. They’re usually incredulous at my seemingly patronizing response. But I’m not just being coy; it’s an actual and honest answer. Runners have the gift of discipline, perseverance and the need to search for our bodily limits. Who am I to deny that? If I didn’t run I’m afraid of all that I would miss out on. A better answer is that I have to run, but I’m afraid they just wouldn’t get it.
The world is full of woulda-coulda-shouldas that are missing out. The main cause of this is the fear of failure. I’m honestly saddened by those of us that never allow themselves the chance to become a runner, for nearly anyone can do it. As a high school coach I can’t begin to describe how often students tell me they aren’t runners. “How do you know?” I ask them, “Have you ever tried?” How many people are walking around missing out? Ironically, this sadness gives way to pride. While others couldn’t take the risk, it is us who answer the bell that tolls.
But maybe we aren’t really in control of all this. What are those twists of fate, those fleeting moments that assent the stars to align in such a way as to allow us to experience all we do? What if that first coach or friend never introduced us to our love affair with running? What if we never had the support of the family around us? What if Anna Cintado, the girl I had a crush on in the 8th grade, never was a distance runner on the middle school track team? What if Bill Bowerman’s wife never made waffles, and he never used that waffle iron to make the first pair of Nikes?! Maybe there was a lot more to it than simply choosing not to be a woulda-coulda-shoulda. Maybe it was our fate.
Life is full of fleeting moments. Those moments are often created by things we can’t control, but instead are the results of massive equations with an unlimited number of variables that have all arrived at specific ends. Our purpose is to identify those moments, respect them for their lack of permanence, cherish them for what they contain and take that leap of faith that will lead to success and away from the woulda-coulda-shouldas. The product of our lives is the combination of fate and choice. Try that answer out at your next dinner party.
