Mom, Dad and my friend Cameron - Setting life and golf in perspective.

There's a lot of parallels in golf and life.  A lot of golfers lose their enthusiasm when things start going bad and it just isn't any fun.  Sounds kind of like life in general, doesn't it.  Let me share a few stories that help me keep life in perspective.  I learned them from Mom, Dad & my friend Cameron (pictured on the left).
On September 9, 2001, Mom & Dad came out from L.A. to visit me in Indiana.  Two days later, we experienced the terrorist attack on The World Trade Center and the Pentagon.  We were out for dinner at the Olive Garden that evening and only two other tables were occupied.  As we were talking, my Dad said two simple words, "They win."  What he meant was that the terrorists broke our spirit and our feeling of being invulnerable.  This came from two people (my parents) who after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, despite the fact they were born on American soil, as teenagers were told that they were not worthy of being American citizens because of their Japanese ancestry and sent to "relocation" camps.  In addition, my mom has been through Cancer twice and my dad has gone through the numerous surgeries for heart conditions.  I've not been through anything so traumatic in my life.  That evening, I learned a simple lesson.  Greatness comes from doing the basic tasks in life like waking up and going to work every day to the best that we've got to give.

A few years back, I had the opportunity to meet an amazing young person, Cameron Howard.  Cameron is afflicted with a condition called Progeria.  Progeria is a disease that causes the body to age at a highly accelerated rate, and most people with Progeria seldom live past 13 years of age.  If you've read my first blog post, one of my basic "rules" of golf is "golf is a game for a lifetime".  Maybe I should change the phrase to "life is a game for a lifetime!"  From Cameron's example, I've learned a lot.  He has a great attitude and a huge smile.  He approaches life with great enthusiasm and his parents, Jason & Stephanie, share that enthusiasm and make the most of every day. 
It's that example of the attitude of the Howard family that has given me the inspiration to approach life with a great enthusiasm and treat each person I meet if more important than myself.    For myself and anyone who's ever met Cameron, he's a bright shining light to those of us who've lived a full life and makes me appreciate the life I've lived and have yet to live.
So although all I may be is a golf pro in Benton Harbor, MI, I hope I can affect someone else's life along the way by sharing some of the lessons I've learned and living each day to the fullest possible.  Thanks Mom, Dad & Cameron.

To learn more about Cameron Howard, visit http://www.iamcam.org/.  In August we will have our annual charity day at Lake Michigan Hills to bring awareness to Progeria Research.