âQuack, Quack, Quack!â
Those are duck noises I used to make as a child.
I was obsessed with the film the Disney classic âThe Mighty Ducks.â
You know the childrenâs film starring Emilio Estevez?
Quick summary: A-Hole hotshot lawyer Gordon Bombay will do anything to win: lie, cheat, steal whatever it takes to get the âW.â It all comes crashing down one night after a big win and no one to celebrate with, he drunk drives and gets arrested.
His punishment? Having to do 500 hours of community service coaching this group of losers (0-11) they donât even have a team name just an area âDistrict 5.â
Bombay, with his gift for gab, thinks he can slick talk these street smart children into doing anything he wants. It doesnât work.
Bombay attempts to get the kids to cheat their way into a win. It doesnât work.
It isnât until heâs reality checked by his mentor Hans of his love for the game of hockey.
He took him to a place when it was pure and fun for Bombay before the sport became merely about winning.
It was about fun and that it should remain the same for the kids he coaches.
I watched the film as if I had never seen it before.
It was mostly new to me. I hadnât seen the film in over 10 years and forgot most of the details.
There was a moment close to the climax of the film right before the big âchampionshipâ game occurs.
Itâs the Duckâs last practice, and the team is told to âhave fun.â
Since itâs the 90s, of course, a fun montage breaks out of the team having fun, and the actors playing on the ice.
As I was watching it, a tsunami wave of nostalgia washed over me.
I now know what it means when someone says, âSimpler times.â
It was simpler for you.
When I watched the original film, I had things figured out.
My biggest problem was what cartoon I was going to watch Saturday morning.
Now, I worry about problems that arenât even remotely fun to think about.
THE MATRIX GOT YOUR BOIâŠ
I feel it may have gotten to you as well.
So why am I telling you about The Mighty Ducks?
Simply, itâs a film about reconnecting to your roots.
Who you are.
Your core.
Life has a funny way of removing people off of their path and making them feel as if âitâs just a moment. Iâll get back to it.â
Then you blink.
*15 Years Later*
And you are no further along than when you started.
Donât beat yourself up if you fell short on a goal.
Itâs not your fault.
Most of the programming of society is put there to distract us, from our path. Our heartâs desires.
I am asking you simply if you feel as if youâve strayed from the wants of your heart.
Make a list of things you used to like.
Things that made your heart sing, and see if you can pick it up againâŠIf you desire of course.
I know a beautiful girl I went to middle school with, amazing singer, dancer.
She won our high school talent show for an original song she wrote, choreographed and performed.
All she wanted to do was be the next BeyoncĂ© (back when she was in Destinyâs Child)
Do you know what that girl is doing today?âŠ
Sheâs an accountant.
Iâve never even heard a single from the girl, but she could sing and dance.
Never heard of a child say they wanted to âcrunch numbers for a living.â
*Not knocking accountants (somebody has gotta count up all that coin Beyonce makes.)
Set time aside today, 15 minutes, and do something simply for yourself. Whether it be making a list of cool rock band names, or eating a Popsicle while playing some music you listened to in high school.
What did you do as a kid? Itâs time to reconnect with your roots.
Something thatâs 100% for you and you alone.
Hustle, hit, and never quit.