Quest for random acts of greatness
“We can be heroes, just for one day.” — David Bowie, Heroes
EVERYONE deserves their time to shine. I’m not talking about being subject to the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns, but even a little time in the spotlight has surely got to be good for the soul.
This thought struck me the other day as I watched a colleague snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in a tenpin “friendly” with his final bowl of the last frame by producing what we later agreed was the best spare either of us had ever witnessed in person.
Not quite the dreaded 7-10 split that is the stuff of nightmares for so many bowlers, but not far away in our humble opinions. It surprised me (I assumed he was merely playing it safe and going for the draw) as much as it did him.
A random act of greatness, it deserved better than it got.
There was no high-def super slow-mo on the big screen (just a rather grainy black and white replay on the lane 9 monitor), no standing ovation as he walked back to his seat, no laneside interview, no flood of endorsement offers, no free games. Apart from being “immortalised” in this column, it will doubtless soon be forgotten by all but the three of us bowling on that lane at that Saturday morning. (And since one of our trio was his young son, I’m not sure he fully grasped the magnitude of his dad’s achievement and the odds of that particular bolt of lightning striking twice.) That’s why such occasions should be celebrated. I’m not saying that we should reward mediocrity. You’re doing what you’re supposed to do when you’re supposed to do it? No gold star for you?
Think instead unfancied speed skater Steven Bradbury and his last-gasp gold medal win at the 2002 Winter Olympics, or tennis player Mark Edmondson winning the 1976 Australian Open while ranked No. 212 in the world. He remains the lowest-ranked man ever to win a major.
And I don’t want to take away from those random acts of kindness and their knack of restoring our faith in humanity.
But if you’re a weekend hacker whose tee shot skims the water hazard, cannons off an opponent’s ball on the green and rolls in the hole, then this one’s for you.
Just make sure you have your sunnies handy. Life in the spotlight can get a little glary.