Shared by Robson Ranch pickleball player, Charlie Hunt, with permission from author, Carol Madsen
Something beautiful has happened this year for me. I took up pickleball. Now that may not seem very significant, but it has become like a part–time job. When I come home, I let people know how my day at work was. Some days are better than others–really, like any job. But I love it, and I have come to believe that pickleball may be the path towards peace. You might think I’m exaggerating or that it’s even sacrilegious to say that, but let me explain.
I now have a group of around 40 friends who know my name. And I know their names.. And my group of friends is beautifully diverse (by Idaho Falls standards). I have played with people from ages 14 to 90. Economically, some of the players are barely making ends meet, and others are multimillionaires. Some are manual laborers while others have MD/PhDs. We have diverse religious backgrounds. We have varied political views. We have gay and straight players. We have very different experiences, views, and opinions. Yet, we love to come together.
When we are waiting for our turn to play, our friendship is deepened. I have talked to people about their special needs children, being widowed or divorced, challenging family relationships, overcoming cancer, being in treatment for cancer, being in a car accident, selling a house, building a house, and being put into assisted living.
Our differences have dissolved into kinship over the common love of the game and the desire to improve. We learn from each other as we bring different strengths. We cheer for each other organically as we are partnered on the court. And off the court, we honestly want good things for each other. It feels miraculous in this climate. Maybe this is Zion? If not yet, it is to me, as Martin Luther King Jr. described, a Beloved Community. We play together as family, with refinement as the driver. And this is true even when refinement isn’t very apparent.
We don’t get angry at mistakes, our own or each other’s, because we all make them. When we have all the time in the world to make a perfect shot, it sometimes goes out. And, we all praise and admire the great shot, angle, huge slam, amazing return, and strategic spot. We love a good game, even when we lose. And we all have off games, but we don’t give up. We are willing to be vulnerable and lose (sometimes badly), because we are in a supportive group that refines us.
This Beloved Community is created by a shared desire to improve while acknowledging that improvement requires losing and things not always going our way. This alone is a beautiful lesson. And we keep showing up, ready to play, willing to cheer, and humble enough to shrug off ours and our partners’ mistakes. It reminds me of the quote by Rumi: “Out beyond our beliefs of right doing and wrong doing, there is a field, I’ll meet you there.” I’m telling you, it’s a beautiful field, or in this case, court. So, off to work I go. I’ll meet you there.