Is it somehow appropriate to begin by saying that my biggest early life inspiration was Bill Murray (as Carl Spackler) in the movie Caddyshack? That my most fervent hope as a young man was to be a top 'Looper', be able to conquer golf course varmints, and ardently follow the Dahli Lama in pursuit of 'total consciousness'? That might be an undersell, but suffice to say that I still believe that very few bad days cannot be improved with a short exposure to Caddyshack.
To be clear, I am now and always have been passionate about Golf. (At least since that day that I managed to hit a solid shot and have that tuning fork of perfection resonate in my heart.) I'm one of those demented people who need to have Golf in my life to be happy. You could offer me a dream job paying millions, and if the catch was that I could never play golf I would turn it down. Yep, I'm THAT kind of Golf crazy. More than that, I am one of those philosophical golfers that sees parallels from Golf to Life. I have always seen golf/life metaphors, and seen the application of those metaphors improve my golf and my life. I have managed to figure out, through a lot of strife and error, that neither Golf nor Life is perfect, and that the pursuit had better be as fun as the arrival.
Concurrent through a lot of Golf has been my journey through a lot of personal growth work. Even though I just called it 'work', that journey has been wildly entertaining (and occasionally downright hilarious), as well as inspiring. I continue to go through this process, both as a student and a coach. If you asked why, the shortest and best answer is "I'm just pretty jacked up." Possibly a better answer is that there are just two stages of development, growth and decay, and growth is the far more interesting of the two. A lot of this work has reinforced those golf/life metaphors. More than that, I have been honored to gain a perspective on many different life stories; my own and those of others. The tales, struggles, and triumphs of those I have been privileged to know have been inspiring and beneficial. One thing this has taught me is that no one is without struggle in their life.
The merging of these two paths-Golf and Personal Growth-has led to my first book "18: A novel of Golf and Life." While the book is about a Golfer, it is not about Golf. (Don't worry-you Golf addicts will get your fix and the rest of you might just see the compelling nature of our silly game.) In writing this book, I have two desires: to entertain and to inspire. The entertainment part is another piece of my past; I have always been a story teller, and my imagination was known to make my practical father nuts. So I have included enough plot twists and drama to get and hold your interest. The second objective is to inspire, and this happens if you see yourself or aspects of your life in one or more of the characters. I hope this book produces questions, and I don't mean the ones about how to hit golf shots. If nothing else, I believe this book will demonstrate that none of us, no matter what our particular struggle, is alone.
