Do you have an idol??
I find that to be an interesting question. Do you have an idol? Is there anyone you've really admired? Or maybe, someone you have followed. Who has inspired you in your life? Well, for some reason I am asking myself these questions this morning. I have found that yes, for just about my entire life, I have had an idol. For me though - the idols have changed as I grew up and changed. I found the only thing that was consistent is all of my idols have been athletes. So, I thought I'd delve into this topic this morning. Who have my idols been? And why?
The first one, actually it was two at the same time, were Joe Namath and Tom Seaver. This is going back to the early 70s when I was just a little boy. Both Namath and Seaver were at the top of their games at that point. Namath was the Quarterback for the New York Jets and Tom Seaver was a top pitcher for the New York Mets. For some reason I developed an almost immediate interest in sports. I can remember reading the sports page when I was 5 years old. At that point in time, it was all about Namath and Seaver. Namath just coming off of a Super Bowl victory and Seaver a World Series victory. Looking back it makes complete sense as to why I would have idolized those two.
Eventually both Seaver and Namath retired. I grew up and I changed. Who would be the next person I idolized?? I didn't have one again until 1985. I was 20 at that point. For some reason there was one baseball player that really stuck out to me. His name was Don Mattingly. He was the First Baseman for the New York Yankees. Like Namath and Seaver, at this point Mattingly was on top of his game. He had just been named the American League Most Valuable Player. I really liked him and ended up going to a dinner in which he appeared and spoke at. He was a terrific guy. A complete gentleman. He took the time to speak to everyone that attended individually. Just a class act. After that, he became my new idol. Unfortunately, he never won a championship with the Yankees. He started to fade in the early 90s and I started to lose interest in him. But as I said, for a good 4-5 years, he was my idol.
I grew up some more and became a full fledged adult. It wasn't until around 2001 that I developed a new idol. I can remember flipping channels one day and suddenly coming upon a fight scene in a movie. It was all Asians in the fight. For some reason I locked in on this fight scene. Especially the man in the middle of it - Bruce Lee. I found out later the film I had stumbled upon was "Enter the Dragon". I was so taken by Lee that I ended up renting and watching all of his films over the next couple of weeks. I found myself mesmerized by his skill. It inspired me to take a study of him. I found Bruce Lee to be an individual who contained all of the attributes I admired by the time I became an adult. Incredible self discipline. A life built around athletics and fitness. A teacher. A philosophizer. Not to mention a man with a ton of guts. There have been other martial arts stars since Lee passed - but Lee was the first. He paved the way for the Jackie Chans of the world. I found that everything I read and learned about Lee, I liked. He became my new idol and remains so to this day.
These are the people I have idolized in my life. I would be curious as to whom other people admire - and why??? All comments are welcome......
The first one, actually it was two at the same time, were Joe Namath and Tom Seaver. This is going back to the early 70s when I was just a little boy. Both Namath and Seaver were at the top of their games at that point. Namath was the Quarterback for the New York Jets and Tom Seaver was a top pitcher for the New York Mets. For some reason I developed an almost immediate interest in sports. I can remember reading the sports page when I was 5 years old. At that point in time, it was all about Namath and Seaver. Namath just coming off of a Super Bowl victory and Seaver a World Series victory. Looking back it makes complete sense as to why I would have idolized those two.
Eventually both Seaver and Namath retired. I grew up and I changed. Who would be the next person I idolized?? I didn't have one again until 1985. I was 20 at that point. For some reason there was one baseball player that really stuck out to me. His name was Don Mattingly. He was the First Baseman for the New York Yankees. Like Namath and Seaver, at this point Mattingly was on top of his game. He had just been named the American League Most Valuable Player. I really liked him and ended up going to a dinner in which he appeared and spoke at. He was a terrific guy. A complete gentleman. He took the time to speak to everyone that attended individually. Just a class act. After that, he became my new idol. Unfortunately, he never won a championship with the Yankees. He started to fade in the early 90s and I started to lose interest in him. But as I said, for a good 4-5 years, he was my idol.
I grew up some more and became a full fledged adult. It wasn't until around 2001 that I developed a new idol. I can remember flipping channels one day and suddenly coming upon a fight scene in a movie. It was all Asians in the fight. For some reason I locked in on this fight scene. Especially the man in the middle of it - Bruce Lee. I found out later the film I had stumbled upon was "Enter the Dragon". I was so taken by Lee that I ended up renting and watching all of his films over the next couple of weeks. I found myself mesmerized by his skill. It inspired me to take a study of him. I found Bruce Lee to be an individual who contained all of the attributes I admired by the time I became an adult. Incredible self discipline. A life built around athletics and fitness. A teacher. A philosophizer. Not to mention a man with a ton of guts. There have been other martial arts stars since Lee passed - but Lee was the first. He paved the way for the Jackie Chans of the world. I found that everything I read and learned about Lee, I liked. He became my new idol and remains so to this day.
These are the people I have idolized in my life. I would be curious as to whom other people admire - and why??? All comments are welcome......
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