U.S. President John Kennedy once said of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, that he "mobilized the English language and sent it into battle."
The President's refrain of Churchill, one of the greatest orators of the 20th Century, speaks volumes as President Kennedy was a renowned wordsmith amongst the educated elite.
I lay no claim to possess, either the aptitude or limitless lexicon which befell upon both, but as America's favorite professor of literature, Robin Williams showed us in Dead Poets Society, neither is necessary when it comes to relishing the liberal arts.
A quick pause for literature.
As I will detail in a later article, the inspiration for this article: a well-seasoned, veteran coach whose overinflated ego shined bright after he lost to a rookie head coach. It revolves around a coach with 315 wins as an NCAA DI head coach, losing to a rookie head coach at the professional level, and the petty, disingenuous, and heinous response and reaction to the loss.
I have already broached the topic of how to handle losing gracefully here: How Coaches Can Get to Acceptance in the "7 Stages of Grief" After a Loss in Basketball, and will expand upon losing gracefully and what not to do.
For now, if Walt Whitman was a basketball coach, here's what he would write about the coach in this situation.
Whitman's original version of O Me! O Life:
Oh me! Oh life! of the questions of these recurring,
Of the endless trains of the faithless, of cities fill’d with the foolish,
Of myself forever reproaching myself, (for who more foolish than I, and who more faithless?)
Of eyes that vainly crave the light, of the objects mean, of the struggle ever renew’d,
Of the poor results of all, of the plodding and sordid crowds I see around me,
Of the empty and useless years of the rest, with the rest me intertwined,
The question, O me! so sad, recurring—What good amid these, O me, O life?
Answer.
That you are here—that life exists and identity,
That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.
I humbly present O Me! O Life! (An Imiganists Revision)
Oh me! Oh life! of the questions of these recurring,
Of the endless rouges of the clodpolls, of courts foul and well worn,
Of myself forever rebuking myself, (for who more well worn than I, and who more clodpoll?)
Of eyes that vainly crave the sight, of the trophies gone, of the scruffle ever renew’d,
Of the poor outcomes of all, of the sluggish and shoddy teams I see around me,
Of the barren and fruitless eras of the bouts, with the doubts me interlaced,
The question, O me! so mad, abiding—What good amid these, O me, O life?
Answer.
That you did lose—that strife exists and forsakenness,
That the beautiful game goes on, while you are unrefined and petty.
So, not a poet but I try to find ways to stay creative and see what I can do in areas (poetry) that I enjoy but lack experience.
And, if you're going to throw shade or trash-talk, why not invoke some of the greatest minds, and wordsmiths in recorded history.
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