I used to play basketball everyday and, forgive me if this sounds cocky, I wasn't half bad. I was an especially good shooter as every white guy that lacks tremendous speed or a 52" vertical leap should be. The thing I liked most about my jump shot was my follow-through. I don't know if it was from watching too many Jordan highlight movies or what, but my follow-through was very natural ... the ball rolled off of my fingers, my wrist snapped, and as the ball would go "swoosh", my hand would hang in the air, celebrating its perfection.

My follow-through isn't so great anymore. I've let the busyness of life, the distractions of new people with different interests, the jobs, the ability to drive away from boredom and everything else tear me away from the game that I love so much. But my jumpshot isn't the only thing that's missing a good "follow-through" these days: so is my life. Not in the grandiose way that most people talk about dreams unfulfilled and regret. I haven't reached the stage in my life when I feel it's relevant to look back and assess how close or how far away I've come from my dreams. That's another post for another day.

No, for me it's in the everyday mundane things that I lack a good "follow-through". Suggesting to my aunt that I mow her lawn every week, rather than her paying someone $40/week to do it; Promising my "puppies" a good raw hide bone to chew on and then forgetting to get it for weeks; Making a mix 'tape' for my girlfriend; Washing my car; cleaning my bike; talking to God. In fact, I'm pretty sure it's in the Bible somewhere (somebody help me out here) that it's the little things that destroy us. Constantly overlooking the small things in our daily tasks, they begin to eat at us, take away our assertiveness, our will, not just to do good, but to do something.

I love my friends, all of them, but I have a hard time staying caught up with some of them. I'm not a hyperbusy person. My job allows me to work when I want. I don't fill my day with errands and tasks and a checklist. I'm not necessarily a lazy person either. I get distracted by things that I want to do, things that I let consume me, things that sometimes merely keep me entertained just enough to discourage me from getting up and "following-through".

This weekend I reopened discussions with my aunt about mowing her lawn. I got my dogs some rawhide bones to chew on. I made a mix 'tape' for my girlfriend. I washed her car (mine's next), and I had a few nice chats with God. And at 9 p.m. on a rainy Sunday evening, I washed my bike so I can ride to the courts tomorrow and work on my follow-through.