SWENSDAY STUFF

Just say, “No.”

During the NBA playoffs a couple of years ago, the Lakers were in the NBA finals and one victory away from the championship. I was visiting coach at the time. Assuming Coach had an equal interest and loyalty to Los Angeles sports, I enthusiastically asked him, “Would you like to watch the Lakers game tonight?” He burst my bubble when he responded,

“Not if I can help it.”

Coach Wooden is a very unique individual in many ways but to me, nothing makes him more exceptional than his ability to just say “No.” When teaching at UCLA, Coach kept a pretty full schedule most of the time so I can understand him saying “No” to things then. But when I visited him, he was already many years retired. I’m pretty sure he had the evening open, yet he didn’t want to spend it watching, what would have been, the pinnacle of the NBA season. Why? What would it hurt? Why did he emphatically say, “Not if I can help it.” as if a pro game was poison?

I have little interest in the world championship of Tiddlywinks (There probably isn’t one). I don’t despise it like Coach hated pro basketball. But suppose I have nothing to do tonight and a friend at work asked, “Hey! Are you going to watch the Tiddlywinks World Championships?” I’m not sure that I would say “No” right away. I’d be curious about a world championship of anything. Besides, I have nothing to do tonight anyway. I know Coach despised professional basketball because it promoted individualism, but wasn’t he a little curious as to who would win that final playoff game? And hey! I was in town and wanted to watch the game with him. 

Why, that day, did he not want to spend two and one-half hours watching the final game? I believe the answer lies in understanding, Coach Wooden was serious about living each day to the full. He took his father’s advice seriously,

“Make each day a masterpiece.”

Every morning when he arose, Coach had a goal to live the perfect day. Had he spent that day reading poetry and good literature that taught him something, writing a letter to someone, playing with his grandchildren or great grandchildren, or making a phone call to someone that needed his advice, his answer may have been different. But for that day (because I had taken it up by asking a lot of questions), watching a Lakers game would not have helped him live the perfect day. Perhaps he had things to do.

Knowing what you now know about Coach, the following won’t surprise you. A few years later, and also in his condo, the subject of drinking came up. I asked him, “Why did you never drink alcohol, Coach?” He said,

“I never found a good reason to do so.”

What an incredible person! What an example! It’s OK to “just say no.”

You’re not going to believe this. I Googled “tiddlywinks tournament” and you’re not going to believe this; there is a world championship. http://www.tiddlywinks.org/tournaments/.