The NFL Draft

Did you watch the draft? We watched the first four picks. Ceil was interested in seeing Trevor Lawrence. I was interested in the QBs. A great QB can rarely lift up a terrible team. It’s hard and rare for a college QB to dictate what team drafts him. Lawrence didn’t seem to care. The other QBs were left to the whims of the teams.

The Jets took the BYU QB second. When a bad team is drafting a QB in the first round every few years, they’re not able to assemble a team around them. The 49ers passed over Justin Fields and Bama’s Mac Jones to take North Dakota State QB, how really only played one season in college, at a lower level.

Then the Falcons took the TE/WR from Florida, the best athlete available. A great player, but more WR then TE. The Birds will still need to keep a traditional TE. I wouldn’t mind seeing Julio traded. He’s great, but oft injured. Plus Julio takes up so much cap room. The Falcons still need a RB and lots of help on defense.

Experts and fans debated where Justin Fields would land. Fans wanted to see him go high, but the talk is always about landing on a good team. Nobody had the lowly Bears taking him. You work your whole life to get to the NFL, and then you get drafted by the Bears. Good to see how humble Fields has been. His #1 Bears jersey is selling like hotcakes.

That left poor Mac Jones. Many thought the 49ers would take Jones third, then he seemingly sat forever alone in the green room. Some compared him to Bernie Sanders sitting alone at the inauguration. Then the Patriots snatched him up. A great place to land. Jones fared better than Fields, and perhaps is in a spot better than the other four QB’s drafted ahead of him.

I went to bed at ten. When C finished her program I heard her change the channel back to the draft. She likes the ESPN College Gameday crew: Reese Davis, Herbstreit, David Pollock, etc. When she game upstairs she gave me a report on Mac Jones.

Supper had been breaded chicken tenders, which we both cut up and put in our tossed salad.

Jeff Henderson: "Letting Go" is one of the most helpful and painful lessons you’ll ever live. When you let go you’re saying goodbye to control and influence, while saying hello to uncertainty. It’s open hands versus closed hands. It’s impossible to let go with closed hands. Opening your hands creates a sense of vulnerability. It’s easier to keep your fists clenched and to hang on. If you’re called to a new season, opening your hands and letting go are requirements. Letting Go is something we all need to practice. It’s like a vaccine to a lack of emotional health.

• Letting Go of wondering if I’m ahead or behind. The vaccine for this is Keep Moving. My favorite quote in this new season comes from John Maxwell: “I never had a clear vision. I just kept moving.” 
• Letting Go of worrying about COVID. I’m not dropping my guard. I’m getting the vaccine and optimizing my health. But I have to let go of the reports of whatever may be happening in places around the world. I can’t control that. The vaccine to this fear is, ironically, the vaccine, protecting your health and letting go of what you can’t control. 
• Letting Go of what others may or may not be saying about me. As Troy Fountain reminds me, “No one is talking about you or me.” And even if they were, you and I can’t waste mental energy wondering about it. The vaccine to this is building, not maintaining. When you are building, you can’t waste time looking backward. In the words of Nehemiah: “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down.” 
• Letting Go of perfection. One of Facebook’s core values is “Done is better than Perfect.” Steve Jobs said, “Real artists ship.” At some point, you have to ship the product. There’s a difference between perfection and excellence. That’s the vaccine to perfection. Perfection is comparing yourself to an impossible standard. Excellence is comparing yourself to your potential. Let Go, do your best, and ship the product.

ME: reminds me of the monkey trap: a jar with a treat in it. The monkey grasps hold of the treat in the jar, then can’t get his fist out of the jar. The monkey won’t let go, and can’t carry the heavy jar, and his caught by the trapper.

I so enjoyed my high school and college years, as well as my years being single. Also of course when the kids were young. I think creating the calendars and journals and my blog helps memories stick in my mind. Yes it is sure fun to look back. Man the years fly by, the kids grow up and move on. Things change. Perhaps now more than ever I'm thankful to have close friends for wise counsel and to help me through.