stepping up to the plate

I continue to be surprised at the new enjoyments I have here: the things that I would probably never have discovered in my “normal,” independent life. I am accustomed to relying on my own ingenuity, and on my own creativity. But here I cannot do that. The most important asset we have is each other. And in this tight community, I am learning that sometimes, no matter how good my idea or plan may seem to be, it is better to go along with another plan for the sake of harmony. Obviously this does not apply in cases of right or wrong, moral or immoral. But on smaller sticking points that don’t matter quite so much, there is often much to be said for working with each other rather than just getting something done in the most efficient way. At least, this is what life this year has taught me, with the security restrictions of this country and the community issues of this compound.
That said, I never know what will become important here that I might have never expected to matter in my past life. Team sports, for instance:nI generally avoid them, knowing better than to embarrass myself by my general lack of sporty skill. Running, swimming, climbing, dance . . . sure. But team sports? Lord, no!
Yet here I find myself joining in on “March Madness” bracket fun, laughing with others at my not-happenin’ prediction.
And upon the rare occasion of a co-ed sporting event, I leap at the chance. Gimp-foot and all, trying to prove that I can do my own running no matter how tap dance-bruised my foot may be. Ok, so maybe this weekend was nothing more glamorous, so far as sporting events go, than a Wiffle Ball game in which rules were “lightly” enforced, to say the least. But we all joined in, young and old, fit and not-so-fit, laughing all the while.