It was going to be a very hot day. Really, really hot. Sahara Desert hot. The calls started coming in around noon. Concerned parents wanting to know if we were still going to hold a baseball practice at 5:00 that evening, the hottest part of the day. As the coach of a team of 13 year olds, it was my decision; cancel practice or have practice as usual. You know what we did.

Every one of my players showed up. Some of them with a worried parent alongside, wondering what kind of a coach holds practice in 110 degree weather. It turned out to be the hottest day in many decades and within 1 degree of the hottest day ever in the history of Boise. We had a very productive 90 minute practice. At the end of practice my players were excited to have done it. They enjoyed themselves and learned a lot about their toughness. There was not another team practicing in the entire baseball complex (normally there would be 5 or 6 teams fighting to get the practice fields).

There are always going to be times when we can let the circumstances dictate what we do in Twin Falls. We could fold up and go home because the weather is too hot, or cold, or rainy or windy. We can skip the gym because we are tired or sore or want to watch something on T.V. When we give up control and let other things dictate our direction we lose our compass. We lose our self-determination and our confidence. We fall back feeling some guilt and without the newfound sense of accomplishment and security that pushing through the circumstance allows us to feel.

1. What do we do when we are working to change our eating habits and we find ourselves at a buffet?
2. What do we do when we get caught at a business lunch where everyone is served the same meal?
3. What do we do when we are at a party and everything is chips or dips or cheese or ranch dressing?
4. What do we do when we get home from a long day, we're tired and there is nothing in the house except frozen burritos and cans of refried beans? Do we fold up and go back on our commitment.
5. we use the circumstance and let it dictate how we respond?
6. Or do we step up and show our determination?
7. Do we gain momentum as we take charge and stay within our guidelines?

There is always something to eat from a buffet that is healthy and not cooked in oil or covered with gravy. We can always pick around the business lunch and find something nutritious and healthy to consume without just clearing the entire plate. Even at the most unhealthy football party food table there will be something to eat that will allow us to stay on the program. Or, we just don't eat anything. There is no law or rule that says just because there is food available that we have to eat it. There is no such thing as "I had to eat just to be polite". We don't have to be polite and continue ruining our health and our futures with food that clogs our arteries and overburdens our joints.

As we make good decisions that support our journey we develop a momentum we have never felt before. The good decisions become easier and we gain confidence in ourselves. We can build pride and feel bravado we have not experienced before.

Two weeks after the hottest day of practice my players will ever experience, we played a tournament in Salt Lake. It was 95 degrees one day and 97 degrees the second day. We won the tournament without losing a game. My players were laughing when the other teams complained how hot it was. One of my players commented after the game, "coach, those other players don't even know what hot feels like".