"Together we are Giant"

            I stole the phrase “Together we are Giant” from the San Francisco Giants organization. It is a wonderful slogan that proves true in all aspects of life. First, with the Giants. My gosh, have you paid attention to this baseball team this year? Nothing simple about them; nothing easy about their year; nothing short of a miraculous post-season. I love the Giants because of their “wretched refuse” status, their heart, their calm under pressure, and their oddball-ness, all of which has been true about them for years. When they won the 2010 pennant, they were a bunch of long-haired weirdoes. One player wore a red thong for luck. The 2012 team is still weird. Awesome. They are a patchwork team that evolved throughout the year, with players coming and going, their wonder boy catcher (probably the MVP) having to take it easy because of a brutal injury that left him completely out of last season, and their best bat getting nailed for juicing. Big life lesson here: none of these stressors threw this team off course, a course that feels as if it has been guided by destiny, and the players surrendered to it with all the integrity that comes along with joy. This isn’t a big money team. Their batting averages kinda suck (except for Posey and Sandaval and postseason Scutaro). The team hits into an infuriating number of double plays. There have been games this season where they looked like a little league team. Painful. “Heart attack baseball” is what the enormous fan base has dubbed watching the Giants. You have to bear down and take what they give each game. Being a Giants’ fan provides so many great life lessons. And, if there is something great to be had, much of the time, you gotta sludge through some pain to get it. The Giants have been there and done that. They are the World Series Champions after sweeping the Detroit Tigers, but it was by no means a cake walk. The Giants were the underdogs; no one expected them to sweep, and, in fact, most people were amazed that they were able to win 6 straight do-or-die games in the playoffs. This success can all be attributed to the fact that together they really are GIANT. This team is better than the sum of its parts, and they are backed by the most supportive, loud, passionate group of fans I have ever been proud to be a part of. There is a beautiful physics at work here, one that is hard to define or deny, and it is reflective of how life in general works--miraculously. Here is a picture of Rob and me at a do-or-die playoff game in San Fran. We flew up for one day just for the chance to see ‘em maybe win. And they did.

            Together, we are all GIANT.

            That miracle feeling I experience around the Giants is also at work in other areas unfolding in front of me. One example is my friend Katharine, who was diagnosed with breast cancer, had a double mastectomy and is now undergoing chemo. Yes, it’s terrible…and, yet…she has risen to mythic status because of how she has faced all of it—with grace, wisdom, strength and acceptance. Everyone who knows her and sees her during this time comments on her amazing strength and beauty. She is giant because a large community of people have rallied around her, and she has accepted this love, this support of her. The community of people she worked with all dressed in pink for her on her day of surgery. I wasn’t there. I was abroad, but I did it, too, because I believe in the power of numbers. Here I am all pink for Katharine, making sure the love vibe was spread across at least two continents. The sun seemed to kiss the moment. 

            I show that picture and write about it here to make sure that vibe continues.

            Together, we are all GIANT.

            This is important to realize so that we choose which causes we rally around, which forces in our life we choose to join up with. “Together we are Giant,” means that a group of people joined together against or for anything can have power. So, this blog is not just about baseball or cancer; it is meant to get you thinking about what you are a part of, what you stand for, what ideas you add energy to and make giant. Together, we could really change shit or energize stuff…together we ARE giant, but we should decide to be conscious of what things we’d like to make giant out there. 

            Thank you to the San Francisco Giants organization for getting me thinking about this theme. And, GO GIANTS!