Stop and Smell the Roses

Stop and Smell the Roses

5/14/13

Our hectic lives prove to everyone that our time is short when it comes to seeing what all that surrounds us.  God has placed many objects of beauty on our planet for us to enjoy and not just bypass.  It is our responsibility to get the work done that is assigned to us but it is also our responsibility to stop and look at the roses that God planted for us as well.  God is not all work and no play so why should we run our lives contrary to what He believes?

Some of you may know that I am an avid sports nut and that there are not many sports out there that I did not play or know something about.  I am not an expert on any sport nor did I play any sport professionally but I did grow up with sports and I did play many of these sports that I loved and even had the opportunity to coach a few teams along the way as well.  When I was a teenager I believed that tennis was the best sport on the planet that is until I discovered my love of soccer within me.  I continued my quest of tennis by playing the sport, learning the sport, watching the sport and falling in love with the sport.  Ask my parents, there was not an opportunity that I missed to be on the court.

Tennis was a popular sport that was covered during the 1980s since the majority of the great players were produced from the United States.  I am not biased about this call but with the exception of a few other European figures, American tennis in the 80s was at its peak.  The digital age had not arrived yet and live television was still in its toddler stages but it was a way to watch tournaments being transmitted within a few seconds of its happening.  I knew when all of the major tournaments occurred and who won them the previous year, I also knew who my favorite player was and in some cases I reflected his temperament at home and definitely displayed this attitude while I was playing.

However, this article and note is not about me or my favorite player it is about a certain point in a certain match that I wish to use as an example.  One of the players in this example match was named Jimmy Connors who is an American and was quite popular, and good, during this time period.  He played well enough to be ranked #1 in the world and was considered to be one of the all time best players of the sport and with all of the time that he and other players took to compete at that level, each one of them deserved to be in the limelight once in a while.

I understand the amount of time and effort it takes to rise to the position of being a professional sports person and I also realize that it takes a bit of luck and momentum in order to rise within the ranks of that person’s particular sport.  Sometimes it is hard for people to understand at what level these athletes must maintain in order to keep their positions in their profession and it is difficult for others to recognize that sports can be a profession in its own right.  And as with any profession, the participants must stay well equipped and fit enough to not get left behind the other up and coming stars.

The tournament was the U S Open and it was one of the later rounds that Mr. Connors was participating in.  Of course the crowd was on the side of Connors since he was the favorite child of the States at that time but it was also the level of play that made this setting more interesting when this particular point was played.  It was not at the end of the match nor was it a real pivotal point in the match but it did demonstrate this concept of stopping for a moment and taking a break even while you are working.

The tournament and match that I am going to use as the example occurred at the U S Open.  This tournament is played at the end of August in New York City which means that the temperatures can be hot and muggy.  These weather conditions can take a toll of the players and provide little or no resting periods in between points and games.  It is a grueling array of conditions that the players train in so that it can be possible to overcome the obstacles that are presented during their match.  This was the case on the game and point in question and will serve as the setting of the article.

The center court of the U S Open is decorated with flower bed boxes that are located on the junction of the court surface to the walls that lead up to the stands.  The cameras always find time to focus on these flower boxes because the flowers that the boxes contain are in full bloom and are very pretty to look at.  One point of the match was being played and it was proving to be an extended point.  When the weather conditions are hot players do not like long rallies that produce long points because it takes so much energy to complete each point, so shorter and faster points are generally desired.  But this point was a one of the longer ones and the rally continued for almost one minute, which does not seem like it would be too long but running and flailing your body around for that long in the heat can get tiresome quickly.

The players were hitting what seemed to be strokes that should have ended the point but somehow each player reached the ball and returned it for another volley.  Finally the opposing player hit the ball towards the sideline of the court but Connors was not going to quit easily so he ran over towards the ball and did his best to return the ball.  He missed the ball completely but the momentum that he had built up to try and return the ball carried him over to the side of the court where he lost his balance and fell right into one of the boxes of flowers. 

The crowd went nuts because of the length of the point and the effort that each player gave in order to win that single point.  Connors sat in the box of flowers for a few seconds and then looked up at the opposing player who had crossed over the net to make sure that Connors had not hurt himself in the fall.  Connors said he was fine and then began to look around for his racket.  The opposing player then turned around and walked back to his side of the net towards his position for the next point.

After Connors located his racquet he continued to sit there in the flower box for a few more seconds and then turned his attention to a flower close to him that he had not crushed in his landing.  He picked it up and looked at it for a second and then placed the flower under his nose and took in a deep breath.  Afterwards he let the breath out and then said to everyone as he was getting up “sometimes you just have to stop and smell the roses.”  While the opposing player did not see the humor in the situation the crowd and Connors did.  Connors was not hurt and he returned to his position and began play once again.

I have watched many tennis matches during my life and that match was the only time that I have witnessed a player fall into a garden box of flowers during a match.  I am sure that it has happened before and that it will happen again but it is the fact that sometimes while you are going along in your business day or daily life there comes a time where you need a rest and it is wrong for us to ignore this concept, no matter what type of conditions we are involved in completing.

There have been many pamphlets, articles and books written concerning how nature and its beauty produces chemical reactions within our bodies that when encountered somehow send these chemicals to parts of our insides and relaxes our body in a natural manner which refreshes our lives so that we may continue our arduous journey.  One of my email groups that I am a part of is a group that sends only scenic pictures, wilderness pictures and other outdoor pictures.  And when my eyes focus on these scenes my body automatically sends relaxing messages and a calming effect comes over me.  I cannot explain this phenomenon but I do understand its affects on my body and I can immediately feel the results.

God has placed these roses in our paths for a reason and that reason is for us to enjoy them and the beauty and relaxation that we feel when we observe them.  God expects us to work hard for the things that we have in life, for He worked hard to develop His world long before we were around.  So why would God want us to have the same opportunities as He did to rest?  He expects us to keep His commandments then we must also respect and keep His examples of work as well.

Stop and smell the roses even if that rose is a joke or funny situation, stop and take the time to relax for a bit and renew ourselves from our hard working lifestyles.  There is always a reason that God says to do something or not to do something, and looking at the beauty of the world that God made is one great example of this.  I have to admit that I have not kept up my end of the bargain when it comes to smelling the roses, and I plan on changing that in my life.  This action promotes life and happiness not only for me and my family but also to my God who has provided me with the chance to smell the rose.

Yes, this is a part of the restoration process.  It allows us to remember what God has done for us and that everything He has done has a purpose for our lives and it is our responsibility to live within His purpose for our life and to be a witness as we enjoy His presence.  God loves us enough to create the relaxing moments in our lives as well, do not ignore them, embrace them and restore your faith and trust in God.

DLB