Tag: March Madness

Are you passing on love, or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

This weekend is all about underdogs, I can tell. I can feel it by what I have experienced already. I’ve always heard that Americans love “the underdog.” Doesn’t everyone?!? Last night we enjoyed watching some March Madness basketball. Experiencing Number 15 seed Oral Roberts beat Ohio State (who was the Number 2 seed) in overtime, was a thrill, to be sure. What a victory! That’s what’s so great about the March Madness tournaments. I’m not even a huge sports fan, but I get roped in easily, because this is one series of games where underdog victories are common enough to give high hope to any team, or to any person, or to any business, or even to any gambler who feels like an underdog, themselves. Victory is always, always possible. “If there is a Goliath in front of you, that means there’s a David inside of you.” – Carlos Rodriguez

When someone underestimates you, it’s so delicious. I love the look on people’s faces when I have surprised them with a level of depth, or a secret strength that they just didn’t expect from me. I also love to be deliciously astonished when I see something special in someone, which I didn’t perceive immediately. This phenomenon is what makes getting to know a person, interesting, even after many years. This year I have noticed a new level of swag, determination and grit in my sweet daughter’s demeanor on the tennis court. People who played her last year, are getting a whole new competitor this year, and they don’t expect it. It’s so fun to watch.

On Thursday evening, there was a storm stirring. My daughter ran in from letting the dogs out, to let me know that there was a lonesome little duckling swimming in the middle of the lake, which sits right beyond our back yard. There were no other ducks in sight. The duckling was cheeping loudly and swimming fiercely. Any time that we got near to it, the duckling would get frightened and swim away from the shores into the middle of the lake which unfortunately is alligator haven. My daughter and I felt so helpless.

I ran inside and I contacted a wildlife rescue organization. I was told to text a certain number with my situation. The person at the other side of the text, asked me to text back some pictures of the duckling. This is the best picture that I could get, as the little guy still had its black feathers and was swimming wildly away:

The uninspiring text which I got back in response to my picture was literally this:

“Yeah I really need to see markings, because unfortunately if it’s a muscovy it’s invasive”

I didn’t like the undertone of the text (at all), particularly since I have seen a fair amount of Muscovy ducks around my neighborhood. (they have a lot of red waddle around their faces) And let’s be clear, a Muscovy duckling is not a Burmese python. This moment reminded me of a thriller movie, where the heroine is breathlessly trying to discuss her fearsome plight to a police officer, or to a lawyer, or to a corporate human resource person, and then the heroine suddenly realizes, with a sinking look on her face, that the person that she is speaking to, really isn’t on her side. In fact, the heroine gets that nauseous, adrenaline filled feeling that she has to instantly shut up, and break away and run, as hard as she possibly can, right at that very moment. (I know that I can be a bit dramatic, at times, but a little bit of drama never hurt anyone.) In that spirit, this is the text which I immediately sent back:

“Oh, it’s fine. I think it made its way back to the reeds :)”

Now honestly, at that very moment, the little duckling was swimming valiantly. It was still in the middle of the lake, but it was making its way across the lake, towards a big stretch of reeds where we have seen groups of duck families rest, many times. The duckling was swimming at speeds that would have given an Olympic swimmer a run (or a swim) for the money. The weather then turned fierce, and we had to go inside. I would love to make up a Hollywood-type ending, but I am committed to the truth here. We haven’t seen the little duckling again. Still, I like to believe that he made it safely to the reeds and to the outspanned wings of some other ducks. I believe this is the best outcome for him, and a highly possible one. I love to root for the underdog! Or in this case, the underduck.