Tiger Talk

I was just downstairs cleaning up the wrappers from the Easter candies that met their final fate at the hands of my three daughters. I have laundry to do, orders to get out and playdates to arrange. I had the tv on and the girls were sort of half engaged in whatever was on.  Then, there was a live interruption announcement which I thought might be followed by information regarding another earthquake here in California.  But, to my surprise, there was a break in broadcasting so the Tider Woods press conference could be aired live.  I thought, "How ridiculous, who cares?" Then I sat down and watched every second of it.

At first, I have to admit, I was drawn in because I wanted to see him squirm in discomfort.  Thinking of his poor wife, his mother and his young children, I suppose that I wanted to see him experience humiliation in front of the world. He didn't.

He sincerely answered questions, all of the questions.  Some were difficult, some weren't.  I quickly realized that I wasn't watching a humiliated man, I was watching a man make the choice to exhibit humility...huge difference. It's the difference between wallowing in guilt or learning from your mistakes and, most importantly, moving forward.  Was it at his wife's expense? You bet. But, he's not making the same mistakes today.  Did he have to get caught in order to make that change? Apparently. But, he's not making the same mistakes today.  Was he horrible for making the choices that he made? Maybe he was.

I sat there feeling so grateful for the fact that the mistakes I've made in my life weren't followed by a press conference.  This morning, the Tiger Woods conference provided me with a reminder that my desire to judge others is really only a synthetic way to go about improving my self image. When I look at another person's perceived shortcomings, I don't have to look at my own and let's face it, that's much more pleasant.  But, it's only when I look at myself, the good and the bad, that I stand a chance to improve the lives of those around me, both today and in the future.

I didn't expect a motivational pep talk from Tiger Woods this morning but, turns out, that's exactly what I got. By the way, Mr. Woods, thanks for that.

Delphinium- Amador Flower Farm 4/4/10