I’ve published 739-blogs in the past 573-weeks. And with great respect to all the Dad’s in my readership, I’ve decided to re-post the one blog that has generated the most feedback more than any other by far! Happy Father’s Day!
This July 30th would have been the 39th birthday of my awesome stepdaughter Michele. It reminds me of the time I had the great opportunity to teach her how to dive off the board into the pool. She was 9 years old. She could dive off the side of the pool real easy, however head first off the board was a different conversation. Over and over she would come to that place that we’re all familiar with: the very edge of the diving board, with her toes hanging off the very end, shivering with a combination of fear and cold. I kept encouraging her, and reassuring her that she was a great swimmer and she could do it. However the voice in her head convinced her she couldn’t.
Finally after so many failed attempts and aborted efforts, she was once again on the edge. I had run out of pleasantries and supportive slogans, and finally I just said, “Fuck it Michele, just dive in the pool!” She looked at me shocked, like I had just committed the mortal sin of a lifetime. Then she looked at the water, looked back at me, and dove off the board. Of course as soon as she poked her head out of the water I hugged and praised her like she just won an academy award. She was thrilled, I was proud and when the summer sun finally set in the backyard, it was a milestone day to remember.
There are only a few words or slogans that provide so much wisdom and provoke so much action: “One day at a time,” “Be Here Now,” “Live and let live.” However “Fuck It” has a certain finality to it. It’s loaded with power and filled with commitment. To finally arrive at “Fuck It” is to finally get to that place where procrastinating has lost its lure, fear has loosened its grip, frustration is at its highest peak, and pettiness is something you are no longer willing to put up with. To finally arrive at “Fuck It” means that your commitment to the task at hand is now resolute.
Important because it just could be that the phrase “Fuck It” is the secret password that finally opens the door, and provides the breakthrough that will push that big idea, project or desire to the next level and beyond. Not like an angry profanity, more like a determined resolve.