| |
I’d like to congratulate you. You have a perfect swing. Now, you’re probably thinking, “What’s that about? He’s never seen my swing.” Well, I don’t need to, because I didn’t say “the” perfect swing (which, by the way, doesn’t exist since we are all as different as snowflakes). I said “a” perfect swing–everyone has a perfect swing. It is the swing you have today that is the result of whatever lessons, practice and experience you’ve had, combined with the range of your physical capabilities. Your perfect swing is the best one you can make today. It can be improved later through more learning and practice, but right now it’s the best one you’ve got. It’s the one you brought with you today, and it’s the only one to dance with.
The question is, do we make that perfect swing every time? Certainly not. Although you can’t make a better swing than the one you brought today (we get into trouble when we try to), you can definitely interfere with it and make it worse. So often we judge our swing, ready to criticize our shots, feeling self-conscious and uptight. Unfortunately, looking over your own shoulder can give you a real pain in the neck.
You don’t forget how to swing from one shot to the next. It’s just that things get in the way. We often get a poor result, analyze our swing and try to fix it, only to have our “fix” interfere with the next swing. Then we try to “fix” that swing, and soon we have so many fixes that our mind feels like a pretzel and we have no idea how to swing the strange-feeling instrument in our hands. It’s usually around the 16 th or 17 th hole that we give up and just swing. Amazingly, our swing is back. We might think that it had been lost and at last we found it, but in fact we never lost it. Our swing was just covered by the interference of over-thinking. When we gave up fixing our swing, the absence of interference allowed it to re-appear.
If you make a swing that falls short of perfect (for you), don’t get down on yourself or try to fix your swing. Instead, direct your awareness to reflect on what might have interfered. Most interference originates in the way we prepare for a shot. The basic point is: don’t change your swing, change your mind. Clear the interference, then trust your own perfect swing, and it will give you the most consistent results. This is the fundamental perspective of Zen Golf.
Copyright 2004 Dr. Joseph Parent
|
