The Puckett Year: Live your life

Life is precious. We live in the world. Live your life.

These are words I heard on a late night NPR program on my way home from a band practice with a group of Johnnies who gather occasionally to play gems written and recorded in the 90s.

The words shared on this public broadcast were simple, yet, powerful and thought provoking. Author Jonathan Safran Foer shared his first point, that life is precious. From the miracle of birth to cherished childhood memories to your first love to the many wonderful experiences one may have through travel, with family or around good friends. I think of my time at St Johns and realize how lucky I was to attend this school, filled with outstanding young men and woman who had a huge impact on the formation of my adult life. The experiences on campus and while studying abroad in Greece and Rome all gave me reason to believe and understand how precious life is. Locally in the small town of Collegeville and globally in every country I have traveled to. I also reflect on the birth of my son, while living in Hong Kong, my wife and I were blessed to bring a new baby into the world. From day one we witnessed how precious life is, and every day we learn something new.

As I anticipate my upcoming Puckett year, scheduled to start in March of 2017, I think of my childhood baseball hero, Kirby Puckett. He clearly experienced the life is precious concept in game 6 of the 1991 World Series. Making a game time catch by essentially flying in the air to rob a home run, followed by a game winning hit, he literally brought the State of Minnesota to a new level and extended a magical World Series to a 7^th game. Anyone watching that night can still remember hearing the words "and we'll see you tomorrow night!"

Now as in life, balance provides many positive aspects, including perspective and a grounded reality. Foer's next idea is that "We live in the world" where normal every day events happen and challenging things occur. People experience times of dull and mundane as well as pain and suffering. There are many examples of this concept throughout life and something that seems to be even more frequent and real in once 30s when compared to earlier years. As of late, I’ve realized that life is in constant transition. I clearly remember a few of my most difficult life transitions including; leaving home for college, adjusting from college to a full time job, becoming a parent, being let go from a company after 10 years, starting a new role within a new industry. Those were uncomfortable times of change. We live in the world and that comes with life's challenges. Kirby Puckett, a baseball legend, a household hero, fell into challenges of health and personal issues in the later part of his life. This was challenging to witness, as Kirby was a hero to so many of us. However, we are all human. Things happen. We all suffer. We in fact live in the world.

Now my favorite part of this trilogy is that we have the opportunity to live our life. The third point brought up by Foer is that one should "live your life". This is an idea that you can fall into the trap of a fast paced life or a slow paced life or feel pressured by many societal expectations. But you also have the opportunity to choose how you spend your time, to live your life. Now this doesn't mean that everything has to be perfect, in fact it’s the balance of the perfect and imperfect. It’s a mantra to do things that you enjoy, even though life has it's challenges. Spend time with people that energize you. Lift others up. Choose positivity and live your life. A leadership mentor of mine in India reminds me often "You have one life!". Live it. Enjoy it. The gentlemen I have the honor of sharing this collection of posts with are excellent examples of this idea. From leading an inter city school, to working with Spanish speaking patients dealing with mental health, to raising a family of beautiful inspiring children, to creating a successful local business; these are just some examples of the many accomplishments from this fine group of men.

This leads me to my last point that ties into all of these. What I've learned during major transitions in life is that they are often uncomfortable. New experiences rarely have familiarity and if they do the transition itself can be uncomfortable. They may lead to unexpected encounters or feelings. This may be fun and exciting (life is precious) but it also can be daunting and scary (we live in the world), however I've learned that these experiences of being uncomfortable often lead to new levels growth and development and confidence (live your life).

I can only imagine what it was like for young 24-year-old Kirby Puckett when he joined the majors, perhaps exciting and scary and uncomfortable. After his first two years in the big leagues, he logged 10 consecutive years, a decade, as an All-Star. A true legend, a hometown hero. If you find yourself in a time of un-comfort, realize it also may be a time of growth. If you find yourself comfortable, consider trying something that is not. You never know what it may lead to.

I have been blessed with a wonderful life, a loving family, outstanding friends near and far and once in a lifetime experiences.

Thank you for being a childhood inspiration, Kirby.

Thank you for your friendship and making a life long impact, Johnnies.

Thank you to my family for all of the love, support and encouragement.

Life is precious. We live in the world. Live your life!