As another National comes up, I am as usual reflecting on what is important.
Not only about dogs and dog shows, but why we do this sport, and what is
important about our venture. We know we lose friends, our dogs pass on, and we
win some and lose some. So, I do wonder what has meaning, and what is just
something to fuss about?
I read this in one of my other magazines, from the Magicians organization. When
a member dies, they have a short message about his or her life. This one struck
me as something we should strive for.
"He was a member of the Order of Merlin (twenty-five years of continuous
membership). He also was a member of Ring 198 (Lexington, Kentucky) and the
Society of American Magicians. Born in Schenectady, New York, he entered the
Conventual Franciscan Order in 1952 and was ordained a priest in 1962. He
served as an assistant pastor in Minnesota before being transferred to Carney
Seminary in Ohio. While working there, he earned a doctorate in psychology
from Bowling Green State University in 1973. In 1969, he was given permission
to leave the priesthood, got married, and began a career as a prison
psychologist, eventually in the Federal Prison System in Kentucky and Michigan,
and retired in 1994. He performed as a professional magician in central
Kentucky. He won first place in both stage and close-up competitions at the
Magifest in Columbus. He held the rank of 1st Degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do,
was a self-defense instructor in the prison system, and won Presidential Sports
Awards in running, jogging, and karate".
This struck me as the sort of thing we all hope can be said about us. I just
read biographies of those running for the board, and while breeding ROMs or
judging for 20 years is great, the above made me think about what we are
actually doing with our lives.
I am sorry if that bored you, but now I have to figure out what to send my aunt
who turns 102 in a few days, and we will be exchanging magic tricks just before
the National.
Evan