It all began in a driveway, in Fresno at 100 degrees

 

 A bit of background.

It was hot, the kind of heat that people refer to as a "dry heat" a euphemism that means as unbearable and heavy as the fires of hell. Yet there we stood, my first hockey mentor and best friend Jason. An unusual place to begin a life long love affair with a sport played on frozen water, yet there we were shooting rubber discs off of a sheet of Teflon into his splintered wood garage door, much to the chagrin of his parents.

 Hooked from that moment, I bought the same Koho stick that only rink in town sold and a set of tube skates. I set up a fruit box in the entry of our small apartment dining area and made pucks out of crumpled up newspaper wrapped in stick tape, in the manner that Jason taught me. My poor single mother and her succession of friends and boyfriends suffered many an errant puck sailing over their wine glasses as I practiced my wrist shot.

We were dirt poor, so my dreams of becoming the next Gretzky were place on hold indefinitely. A minor setback that did nothing to divert my love of the sport. It became and obsession that closely rivaled my love of skateboarding. I would spend hours at the local libraries, convenience stores and the rink, reading copies of Hockey Digest and devouring the hockey stories published in Sports Illustrated. More than once, I was asked to leave or purchase the magazine that I was reading. That said most of the time the folks understood that I was a poor kid and let me read, I am still thankful for that.

Eventually I was able to make the crosstown bus ride and with bent ankles and knock knees, was able to take my first strides and actually begin knocking the puck around on ice, later moving on to formal competition.

That experience, as well as most of childhood was pursued with the spirit of Shoshin, the Zen Buddhist concept of beginner's mind. A mind open, eager unfilled with preconceptions. A state that is natural for curious children and much harder to achieve as an adult. Shoshin is commonly used in the Japanese martial arts with the goal of retaining that state of mind, even when one has achieved a mastery of the art.

During the past 2 years, I have witnessed my daughter and her friends and teammates in the process of learning to play this sport that moves at a breakneck pace, requires an incredible mental and physical commitment on every shift. By and large, in this age when we expect so much of ourselves and pass that expectation of expertise on to our children, most of these girls display Shoshin every practice.

While watching these girls, I was inspired to begin playing again. Through the process of writing this blog, I hope to entertain and amuse. Please feel free to leave comments,  and feedback.

Take care,

Daniel