Danny ChaiWe had a (to me) fascinating conversation with a friend from church who at one point in her life was an Olympic caliber synchronized swimmer. It’s insane the time required of them, up until high school it’s hours of practice every day, then in high school they basically practice all day, they quit school and are all home educated. She didn’t jive with that so quit frosh year of high school.
Her teammates went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta so we asked if she had any regrets, and she had none, because they all turned out to be losers. They’re all like in Las Vegas, working in O (that Cirque du Soleil show) or as sketchy dancers. What use is a gold medal if you end up a loser in life?
I dunno, that was interesting to me. We honor people who completely devote themselves to something but there’s a flip side to that; sometimes that singleminded devotion leaves them incapable of functioning normally elsewhere in life. I think balance is to be valued more than that.