I certainly had an enjoyable time up in Palo Alto at
graduation last weekend. It was great to have the opportunity to spend time
with my family and friends. It definitely felt comforting to return to the
campus where I spent 3 1/3 years of my life, but it did feel a little different
since I have been gone for several months. Most of my friends who were there
until graduation had to come to grips with saying goodbye to all the familiar
faces and places, but since I had already done that in December (after I
completed my last final exam), it was a bit easier for me to enjoy the
celebratory weekend. We were fortunate to have Tom Brokaw as the commencement
speaker. He delivered a thought-provoking historically-motivated address, which
I guess everyone expected due to his 40+ years in journalism. In my opinion,
his most notable comment was “to remember that it will do us little good to wire
the world if we short-circuit our souls” in reference to the technological
revolution that we are presently experiencing. I thought this statement
provided more than enough to reflect upon- Is all this cutting edge technology
aiding us or consuming us? Who knows? Probably a little of both. I’m sure
that could be debated for hours.
Anyway, after an eventful weekend of memorable speeches,
dinners with family and friends, and a few inevitable final goodbyes, I returned
to Tucson to resume (hopefully) the final few weeks of my rehab. All the
extended-Spring players have made the trip up north to either Yakima or Missoula
to begin their seasons, so there are only a handful of us that remain here at
the Spring Training complex (I think there are literally 7 or 8 of us). It’s
definitely nice to have the entire place to ourselves so we can roam the
training room, cardio room, weight room, locker room, and workout fields freely,
but it’s also disappointing to watch so many players come and go and to not be
able to go with them. In the latter sense, I think the emptiness incites a bit
of restlessness, but that’s when we (the rehabbers) just have to remind
ourselves that the whole process is a means to an end. It’s pretty ironic how
in the same way that an effective pitcher must remain level-headed in response
to the outcome of at bats and games, a rehabber must remain level-headed in
understanding the importance of the continuance of the process.
I’ll see everyone next Monday. I also wanted to point out
that I was pleasantly surprised at how many people have commented to me over the
past few weeks that they read (or skim or peruse) Mark Your Mondays. That’s
definitely nice to know. I’ll be back next Monday with an update from rehab.
Until then……………………Mark.
Want to ask Mark a question? Write him via his
editor at FutureBacks@cox.net