Sidelines

Been thinking alot about being on the sidelines, watching things unfold around you and knowing you have no impact on what happens.. Sure you can talk and support but when it comes right down to the action you have just to sit and watch.. Is this really a bad place to be? For some it is..

Last season John Maine was one of the best starting pitchers we had, this year he started out really good and then developed a bone spur in his shoulder.. He tried to pitch through the pain and ended up pitching real bad, they finally shut him down for a few weeks and when he got back he was just as bad, the answer? Surgery, more rest? Well the final answer is surgery which he will have after his season is officially ended but they decided to let him rest.. After three more weeks of rest he finally threw the ball the other day, he threw around 30 "tosses" and felt no pain - ready to pitch?? He thinks so, the pitching coach and manager say otherwise.. Yesterday he tried to convince his manager and coach that he was ready, instead they gave the ball to a guy with a lifetime 8.62 ERA.. Here is a quote from John Maine yesterday, "You know, I can come in here, get dressed, talk and joke with everyone. Go out and stretch. But once the game begins, I'm not part of the team. There's nothing I can do to help us. I wish there were. I just hate this."

So, what do you do when you're on the sidelines? Listen, watch, support and wait.. Those things are much more important than you think.. Sometimes the people in the action will miss what's going on around them, they can only see the part of the action that they are dealing with, the people on the sidelines can see the whole stage in front of them. Watch that stage and listen to what people say (and when I say listen, I don't mean hear their words, but listen to what they are actually saying with their words and their body language).. If you do that then you are in a better position to support those in the fray.. Think of how many people's job it is to study games after they are over to see if the pitcher is tipping his pitches by the way he stands or by the way he holds his glove or the angle of his arm while getting set to throw.. Being on the sidelines is just as important as being in the game sometimes..

There are two types of leaders, there are those that lead from the front line and those that lead from the back.. "What can we learn from following leaders, who lead from the rear, where are they now?" (SkyClad's History Lessons) I am very much a front line leader but I can tell you there are benefits of leading from the rear. When fighting on the front line you only see your ally to your left, your ally to your right and the opponents directly in front of you right? I suppose if you're good you can see a bigger pocket than that (which I am), but you still can't see the whole battle field, especially if it's a wide spread battle.. Do you need to see the bigger battle? Sometimes you do.. With that said, I still prefer to be on the front line.. I've been leading from there all my life, it feels good and it feels comfortable, from there I have complete control over my little spot on the field.. I am learning how to lead from the rear, how to watch those I care about fight without jumping to their side.. A big part of that is having confidence in those you are leading, in knowing that they can handle the fight.. The bigger/harder part for me is knowing that sometimes they don't need you to jump in.. I want to always feel that I'm needed, if they can handle the fight without me what am I still important? However being in the rear you can watch how people fight both alone and together, you can help them after the fight to learn from mistakes they might not know they are making. You can help them after the fight to see what the other people are doing around them. You can see when the enemy is mounting a big push just over the horizon.. I learned a lot of this while healing from my injuries this year (first my partially torn rotator cuff and then my ankle/tendon issue).. However much I learned it was still nice to get back on the line when I could..

Everyone is on the sidelines from time to time and everyone is on the front lines from time to time. Very few people feel equally as comfortable in those two spots.. When on the sidelines remember that those in the fight need your support..

----

In other news.. Last night was awesome, I made dinner and brought it over Matt & Sile's apartment.. We had a "bit" to drink and had an overall good time, both at Matt's and after we got home.. :D

Huh, I've been at work for almost 3 hours? I guess I should do some work?? Tonight is 3rd Thursday, me and Jessie are planning on going over there to see some live music.. Speaking of live music.. Glen is coming back to MA in October, Oct 16th and Oct 31st.. I will just be getting back from Japan on Oct 31st so I guess that means I will be going to see him on Thursday Oct 16th.. Sounds good right? Well, Jessie is going to see Hanson with Sara.. Anyone want to go see Glen with me on the 16th?

OK, *now* I need to get back to work.. :D

---- Thought of the day
I hate driving all the way to work when all I’m going to do here is sit in a dark empty classroom and randomly browse the internet.. I can do that so much more effectively from home.. :D