Going through the recent issue of Inside Gymnastics Magazine There was a great article where Mary Lee Tracy shared her insight. I want to share her “10 things” and add my own insight. [Read more…]
In Memory of my Brother. Jeffery Edmonds
UPDATE:
In lieu of flowers, Bridget is setting up an education fund for children
Fiona and Oliver Edmonds Education Fund,
c/o Atlantic Regional Credit Union,
55 Cushing St., Brunswick, ME 04011.
10/13/2013 Today at 12:30 PM my youngest brother JEFFERY EDMONDS lost his battle with cancer.
“Even the strong show signs of fatigue.” Friedrich Nietzsche
My brother said this to me once. At the moment, I have a deep and un-abiding understanding of it.
Chris, Thom, JEFF, Tony
Things I’ve earned from my brother Jeffery Lee Edmonds
People don’t actually change that much. Since Jeff was younger than me, I got to see him grow up a little. Obviously he’s changed a lot. But in many ways, he’s also very much the same. The sensitive, gentle demeanor he’s had since he was younger never left him. He’s always had a dry sense of humor, a deep love of food, an infectious laugh, and a tendency to get lost in his own world.
I think this a good reminder for everyone, especially when we get stuck in the toxic pattern of wishing we were different or more like so-and-so, that many of our personality traits and preferences seem to be hardwired from a very young age, and that’s pretty cool.
You can be smart, cultured, and mature, and still think nothing in the world is funnier than a poop joke. If there’s anything I’ve learned from my three smart, funny, well-informed, sensitive, thoughtful brothers, it’s that there is no shame in scatological humor. Jeff, specifically, is capable of discussing the nuances of philosophical belief systems, building a super computer, and writing a dystopian novel, and he still cracks up at the mere mention of the words “poop” or “butt.” The lesson here? Let your poop joke flag fly!
Appreciate Nature. No one I know had a bigger and better appreciation of the world around him. Spot the natural beauty of the mountains, the trees, the ocean, everything. Beauty surrounds you. Slow down and appreciate it.
LAUGH at yourself. At Thanksgiving one year in front of the entire family and his girlfriend (soon to be fiancee) I managed to spill my entire plate of food onto my lap. I was horrified. Our eyes made contact and we both just started laughing. Sometimes in life things are going to be messy and not go the way you want. Laugh at it and move on. Today- just about the time of Jeff’s last breath, I dropped a potato on the floor in a restaurant. I said, “that one’s for Jeff.”
Stop procrastinating. When Jeff first moved with his family to Maine from St. Louis my wife went up to help paint some rooms in his house. They were up nearly all night painting and Jeff spoke of his goal of writing a novel. His time on this planet expired before he was able to finish. Get off your ass and finish your goals. Jeff was a writer.
He always wanted to write a novel. He just ran out of time. We have have things we wanted to do but come up with excuses on why we can’t do it.
No excuses, promise me you will follow through with your goals.
Jeff
This moment is your life.– Your life is not between the moments of your birth and death. Your life is between now and your next breath. The present – the here and now – is all the life you ever get. So live each moment in full, in kindness and peace, without fear and regret. And do the best you can with what you have in this moment; because that is all you can ever expect of anyone, including yourself.
I have just learned that A lifetime isn’t very long.– This is your life, and you’ve got to fight for it. Fight for what’s right. Fight for what you believe in. Fight for what’s important to you. Fight for the people you love, and never forget to tell them how much they mean to you. Realize that right now you’re lucky because you still have a chance. So stop for a moment and think. Whatever you still need to do, start doing it today. There are only so many tomorrows.
I stand upon the ocean shore.
As a ship at my side opens her sail
to the morning breeze and begins to glide
across the water blue.
She is a beautiful sight.
I stand and watch her as she glides
with grace and strength into the clouds
on the horizon.
Just where the sky and the ocean meet
and come to mingle with one another.
When I hear someone cry out,
“She is gone.” and I must turn and say to them,
“Yes, but gone only from sight.”
For within the mind and heart she can always
be found.
For life is eternal,
Love is immortal,
and death is only a horizon,
and a horizon is nothing save the limits of our sight.
And, just at the moment when someone says, “There, she is gone,”
there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices
ready to take up the glad shout, “Here she comes!”
And that is dying…
Death comes in its own time, in its own way.
Death is as unique as the individual experiencing it.
Obituary for Jeff
Upcoming Courses
USAG Safety and Risk Management Course (U101) Saturday October 5th 2:00PM Atlantic Gymnastics Portsmouth, NH
Course Code TR10052013NH
Register through USA Gymnastics
USAG SCHOOL AGE HANDS ON TRAINING COURSE (R103) Sunday November 10th 9 AM. Atlantic Gymnastics Portsmouth, NH
Course Code TR11102013NH
Register through USA Gymnastics [Read more…]
Letter to Tony 1993
My gym (Atlantic Gymnastics) is turning 20 next year. When I opened my gym I felt like I didn’t know what I was doing and I was looking for advice on how to navigate this crazy adventure. If I were to write a letter to myself and mail it back in time to NEW BUSINESS OWNER TONY imparting some kind of wisdom or advice to my former self that I wish I had known I would give the following advice.
GYMNASTICS RECRUITING IS A DIFFERENT BEAST
Evan Stichler
Head coach Danna Durante talks with Christa Tanella during a gymnastics meet between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Auburn Tigers at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Ga., Friday, January 18, 2013. (Evan Stichler, evansan8@gmail.com)
College recruiting is a pretty popular subject when it comes to talking about your school’s next generation of champions.
Fans love to watch players throughout their high school years and see who might be representing your favorite team in the coming years. [Read more…]
Do this to help conquer fear.
Snakes, heights, or small spaces? Beam flight, Bar dismounts, Vault? Whatever starts your knees wobbling, watching someone else safely handle the source of your fear can help you overcome it, finds a new Swedish research.
If you see a person like yourself safely managing the source of your fear, your brain will absorb that information and use it to reduce your phobia, explains study coauthor Armita Golkar, Ph.D. Your brain tells itself, “If it’s safe for her, it’s safe for me, too,” Golkar says.
So whether you’re freaked out by Beam flight, a release move on bars or a tumbling pass on floor, ask a team mate to take on the source of your shivers in front of you, Golkar advises. Here’s an example: Afraid of every layout on Beam? Have your team mate do one in front of you. When she doesn’t die, your brain will recognize that your imagined threat is nothing to worry about, the research suggests. (In fact, this may be even more effective than you tackling your fear yourself, Golkar says.)
6 “P’s” of Essential Training
Early in my career as a coach I was given the advice that to be successful I needed to use the 6 P’s of COACHING
Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance
DEAR COACH
Dear Coach
The following are two letters to coaches. They are not actual letters rather they are composites of letters. The first letter is from 1990 to me in my first year “really” coaching, the second letter is from 2013. Compare and contrast the content and tone of the letters. [Read more…]
To CHOKE or NOT To CHOKE. That is the question
Now that football season has started again- Have you ever wondered why you see so many professional kickers miss “easy” field goals? Their brains may be to blame: Thinking too hard could cause you to choke under pressure, says new research from the University of California, Santa Barbara.
The study found that your explicit memory, or step-by-step thought process, can muddle your implicit memory (your tool for remembering how to do things automatically) and negatively affect performance. For example, if you try to remember all the steps to riding a bike while pedaling, you’ll quickly be in the bushes. But hop on and start cycling without a second thought, and you’ll coast away easily. [Read more…]
DREAMS HAVE EXPIRATION DATES
DREAMS HAVE EXPIRATION DATES
When I was younger, ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS MAKE AN OLYMPIC TEAM. It wasn’t a far-fetched dream either; I was pretty good. But I got slower, and I got less motivated, and I had other interests. Sooner or later, it became clear that it wasn’t going to happen. My dream of being an Olympian had an expiration date, and expire it did. [Read more…]