The Tennis Guru: Murphy’s Law

April 5, 2021 | By Dr. Tom Ferraro
Ferraro_Photo
Illustration provided by Sudipta Dasgupta

 

This is Part Eight of Dr. Ferraro’s The Tennis Guru series. Click Here to read the previous installments


Yin, Rebecca and Virgil awoke early the next day, packed up camp and made their way up the mountain path to see The Tennis Guru. Yin thought about the dream he had the night before, that magical kiss from Rebecca and how he was feeling about all this. Though he couldn’t quite recall all the details of his dream, he now felt more calm, confident and cool about things.  He looked over at Rebecca and joked, “Wow Rebecca. You really are my good luck charm.”

Rebecca smiled  and winked at him which only made Yin feel even more confident. 

As the two love birds sauntered along, Virgil kept a keen watch on Yin and worried that Yin may now begin to lose focus as they advanced to the summit. He could no longer hold his tongue and shouted at Yin, “Hey pal, let’s stayed focused. We’re not home yet.”

Yin looked back at Virgil and said, “Relax bud, you worry way too much!”

The moment Yin finished his remark there was a loud crack of lightning which hit a tree that was hanging over the path just ahead of them. Yin, Rebecca and Virgil all flinched and froze as the tree came crashing down across the path 50 feet ahead of them. The wind began to pick up and rain came thundering down on them. In a moment they were all drenched to the bone and found shelter under the stony ledge.

Virgil asked Yin if he had brought any rain gear and Yin shook his head no. Virgil asked him if he had a change of clothes and Yin again said no.

Virgil then said to Yin, “You were so confident and cool just one minute ago and take a look at you now! Let this be a lesson. Never count your chickens before they hatch and learn to stay focused until the end. Furthermore, always be ready for surprises because surprises will always come. This is what they call Murphy’s Law and it means that you ought to expect the unexpected and have a plan which allows you to let go of your anger, surprise and panic.”

This was a lesson well learned for Yin and they all relaxed, set up a camp, built a fire and dried off. They had a hardy meal of baked beans and franks and as the fire crackled Yin began to doze off and thought of all he had learned so far on this journey came to his head. He remembered how he had met Virgil who instructed him that “haste makes waste.” He thought about the two wolves that guarded the easy passage way up, his ferry crossing over the River Styx and the ring of courage that Charon had given him. He recalled his dangerous dissent into the demons cave and how he met Rebecca who had taught him how to have self-respect. And finally, he thought about Murphy’s Law and how one had better be ready for surprises which always will come. As he approached the threshold of sleep he smiled to himself and thought how much fun this entire journey had been. Then he fell into a deep restful sleep.

To be continued…

 


Dr. Tom Ferraro

For consultations, treatment or on-site visits, contact Dr. Tom Ferraro Ph.D., Sport Psychologist, by phone at (516) 248-7189, e-mail DrTFerraro@aol.com or visit DrTomFerraro.com.

Oneononedoubles banner art resize
USTA NTC

January/February 2024 Digital Edition