Rock Bottom

Year Six - Week 21 – October 21, 2003

I may have hit rock bottom last week. It’s hard to tell because there’s no signpost or map to indicate the point where one cannot fall further. I certainly hit something, but instead of shattering into pieces I bounced, and now I’m writing again. I started a new short story and made good progress on the novel’s final edits. I also went into the studio to tighten four tracks of my upcoming CD.

It’s difficult to explain how or why this was the week the floodgate finally broke. And to be honest, attempting to figure it out might send me right back into the funk, so there will be no navel gazing. The same probably can’t be said for Red Sox and Cubs fans. What a week of misery they had.

I’m a die-hard Philadelphia supporter – Phillies, Eagles, Sixers & Flyers -- I’ve followed them all for thirty years, so I can empathize with perennial losers. The Cubs and Red Sox are more noteworthy, but Philadelphia in the context of the combined result of the four major sports is the biggest loser of them all. Our last championship dates back to the 1983 76ers. Hey Boston, you had the ’01 Patriots and wasn’t there a streak of championships in the 90’s for the Windy City with a guy named Jordan? And how about those ’85 Bears?

You want to just talk baseball? The Phillies did win in 1980 and also made a World Series trip in ‘83 and ‘93, but we’ve only had one championship in a hundred years – no one has a worse percentage. At least Boston won several World Series before they got rid of Ruth.

A Red Sox columnist wrote last week that if the team were a girl, he’d have left her long ago, but you can’t leave your team, it’s in the blood, a lifetime commitment. Some do hop on other bandwagons, but it isn’t nearly as satisfying as waiting for the day your childhood team brings home the bacon. Red Sox and Cubs fans, don’t lose heart, you will eventually have that day in the sun, and you’ll realize that all the losing makes your victory that much sweeter. Take solace in the fact Yankee fans will never experience that (okay, it’s a stretch).

There is something to be said about loyalty and it resonates well beyond baseball, and perhaps that’s how I got back into the swing this week. When things go bad, it’s easy to just walk away. It takes character and fortitude to tough it out -- maybe you’ve also got to be a bit crazy. Regardless, I never lost faith in my writing ability and this week it has paid off.