Hope you have a great day. You’re getting old.
Yeah, number 39. I still remember my 30th birthday, and everyone asking me if I felt different and/or older. My response was, “No.” It was the truth. I felt pretty much the same as the day before. Birthdays just aren’t a big deal to me anymore, I suppose. I vaguely remember a time when birthdays were exciting. I see that in my daughter now, who is already excited about her birthday coming in early June. She was also pretty excited for me, too, asking my wife yesterday what kind of party Daddy was going to have. My son, who turned two years old last month, had a Blue’s Clues theme. She was asking my wife I was going to have a Duke party (I was hoping for a ‘Duke party’ earlier this month, but that didn’t happen.)
Anyway, I expect a year from now people will be asking the same type of questions. “How does it feel to turn 40? Do you feel older?” I doubt I will. I feel older all the time. It doesn’t take a particular birthday to make that happen. And today doesn’t feel especially different than any other day. In fact, it was just about a week ago that I realized, “Hey, my birthday’s next week.” So, it will be a relatively uneventful day. I’m working today, we have an event at my daughter’s school tonight, and that sounds alright to me. We’ll spend time together as a family tonight, and probably do some fun stuff tomorrow to “celebrate”.
I suppose a lot of people do not look forward to aging. But, at this point in my life, it’s not something I really think about that often. Sure, there are things I can’t do like I used to. I used to be… uh… “a number of pounds” lighter, and could move around a basketball or tennis court much better. I used to not be sore all over for a day or two after strenuous (or sometimes not-so-strenuous) physical activity. I used to be able to eat enormous amounts of food and not gain weight. I used to be able to lift heavy things without worrying about the possibility of back surgery (which I had a few weeks after last year’s birthday.) I used to be able to stay up half the night, get up the next day, and feel fantastic. I used to be able to look at the top of my head and only see hair (now, I’m still seeing hair, but there seems to be a little less each time I look.)
Those days are all over. Way over. But I’m fine with that. I’m thankful for every day now. When I was young, it seemed like I had all of the time in the world. I didn’t worry about the future. The future was to come. I’ll worry about that later. Well, it’s later, and has been for some time. The future is now, every day. So, I don’t dwell on what I can’t do as well, or what it would be like to be young again. I have a wonderful wife whom I love with all of my heart, a daughter and son who bring so much joy into my life each day, and a Father who loves me so much that He chose to have His own Son die in my place. Old or not, you can’t get any better than that.
So, birthdays may not be as exciting or special for me as they were as a child, but it is still a marker of sorts and a good time to reflect on what’s happened thus far and what is to come. My hope is that I’ve done some good in my first 39 years and haven’t embarrassed God too much and that I’ve been a good husband and father. My hope for the future is that I’ll be an even better husband and father, that I will teach my children to walk the path that leads to heaven, and that I will allow God to use me in new ways to be Jesus to those around me. And, that I’ll not take for granted each new day I’m given, because it is a special gift and should be lived as such.
I also hope people won’t be asking those silly questions next year.
I did do a little shopping for my birthday last night. My mother-in-law got me a gift certificate and I used it to purchase myself a new book and a new CD with it. I bought the new Passion CD, Everything Glorious. I always look forward to the Passion discs, because they’re live and performed by favorites of mine like Chris Tomlin and David Crowder Band. I haven’t even listened to it yet, but will be doing so today. I also bought the newest book by Ken Gire, one of my favorite contemporary Christian authors, titled The North Face of God : Hope for the times when God seems indifferent. I love Gire’s work and look forward to reading this soon. Also, stopped at the mini-mart across the street from work this morning to pick up my morning Dew, and my favorite Life Savers caught my eye. Butter Rum. I’ve had trouble finding them recently, for some reason. I haven’t had any in years. So, that was a nice present. It’s the little things…
NC State’s coaching search
Let’s see… NC State has now been turned down by Rick Barnes, John Calipari, John Beilein, and Steve Lavin. Barnes is at a football school in a football conference, but chose that over a basketball school in a basketball conference. Calipari is at a school with a little basketball tradition, but in a horrible conference, and chose to stay put. Beilein is at a school that hasn’t exactly been a basketball power of late, but has had a couple of good years and is in basketball conference, but I would still think NC State would be a step up, although perhaps not a huge step. And Lavin is a coach without a team - he’s a broadcaster now and chose to remain out of coaching over coaching at State. There is now even a story suggesting that former UNC player and assistant Phil Ford may be in the mix.
This is starting to look a little like UNC’s search after Guthridge’s retirement in 2000. Everyone in the “Carolina family” was turning them down left and right 
- Roy Williams, George Karl, Larry Brown, and others - until they finally found someone who would take the job - Matt Doherty. That worked out real well, too. But, at least UNC was searching for a coach because their previous one had retired, not because their fans were so ungrateful that the guy had enough and left on his own. (That came later when their players cried because Doherty yelled at them, and got him canned.) Remember, State had Les Robinson before Sendek. Well, maybe now State can give Matt a call… he’s probably going to be on the list sooner or later.
I think that State had a good guy there in Herb Sendek, but was disappointed in him because he didn’t bring them up to the level of their neighbors - North Carolina and Duke. I’ve got news for State fans - very few people out there could do that right now, and most of the ones who could aren’t interested anyway. And, if someone ever does, it will likely take some time. We’re talking Roy Williams and Mike Krzyzewski here. Who of that caliber is going to leave where they are to come to State? I’m guessing… nobody. Sendek is a good coach and they very well may end up with a lesser coach now. I hope they do, because that’s what their fans deserve.