I was standing reciting my talk with my knees knocking at my Jewish confirmation. I was 15 and the quality of my fear is unforgettable at 74. I have substantially improved my public speaking but it took some time. Maturing took time.
Today I watched the stunning tennis game of 15 year old Cori Gauff. As a long time tennis fan at times it brought tears to my eyes. Her composure in the most prestigious tennis tournament on earth is illuminating.
Her dad played Division 1 NCAA basketball and her mother the same level but track and field. Her dad is her coach.
When she speaks and plays she seems to fulfill many parents hopes for their offspring. In other words the following qualities surface: humility, courage and sensitivity. God has blessed her with lovely parents and with that rare quality in any athlete, grace under pressure.
In the match Rybarikova hit an overhead to Cori’s backhand corner. In response Ms. Gauff hit a blistering backhand down the line in the Slovak’ s forehand corner that was untouchable. That takes speed and wonderful hand eye coordination. Novak Djokovic has been measured as the fastest human on the court in pro tennis. His hand eye coordination is a thing to behold. You get my drift. Cori? At times I asked myself, “Does she miss?”
I think we are following a 9th grader, who has the capacity now to win Wimbledon. The world is watching. Today it was Ms. Gauff 6-3, 6-3 in 69 minutes over a good veteran player.
H. . Robert Rubin, MD, Amazon best selling memoirist and author of Look Backward Angel and How Did I Get Through This? available on Amazon.
Pilgrim on a Long, Long Journey 