By rich strack

Sometimes, something you need finds you when you're not looking for it.The other day I was reading about my favorite football team, the New York Giants, when I came across an article that said head coach Ben McAdoo read a poem to his team on the first day of preseason camp.The poem is "If" by Rudyard Kipling.As soon as I read the first line I believed Kipling was talking to me. After I read the last line, I decided to make a copy, place it an envelope, and leave it as part of my legacy for my son.If you can keep your head when all about youAre losing theirs and blaming it on you,If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,But make allowance for their doubting too;If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,Or being hated, don't give way to hating,And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;If you can meet with Triumph and DisasterAnd treat those two impostors just the same;If you can bear to hear the truth you've spokenTwisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:If you can make one heap of all your winningsAnd risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,And lose, and start again at your beginningsAnd never breathe a word about your loss;If you can force your heart and nerve and sinewTo serve your turn long after they are gone,And so hold on when there is nothing in youExcept the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,If all men count with you, but none too much;If you can fill the unforgiving minuteWith sixty seconds' worth of distance run,Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!After reading this poem again, I felt mesmerized by the repetition of the word, "If." It's a little word with big implications. The word makes us reflect about our regrets from the past and ponder our uncertainties of the future. These two letters prompt us to think about lost opportunities and found possibilities. Here's a dialogue to illustrate my point."If I had taken that job, my life would be set""If you didn't dump that wonderful girlfriend you had, your life would be set.""Now I wonder if I should apply for this warehouse job.""If you stayed in college, you might be managing this warehouse.""If I stayed in college, I'd be a hundred grand in debt now.""Yes, but if you got your degree, you'd have some money in your pocket.""If I call my ex girlfriend, what'll you think she'll say?""If I was her, I wouldn't answer the call."Author Michael Lydon, writes, "If - two letters, one little puff of breath between tongue and teeth ranks high among language's most powerful and mysterious words." "If" can make us confront the conditions of our lives that have shaped who we are or - who we are not.With a positive twist of the word, we can learn from our decisions and choices so we can make better ones in the future. The expression "no ifs, ands or buts" originated in the 13th century, is an ultimatum for determination."You better be at the appointment tomorrow - no ifs, ands or buts."I've spent hours around a fire on a cold winter night having deep conversations beginning with the words, "what if. …"What if you had paid more attention to you child, would she have done better in school? What if you lived in Sedona, Arizona, instead of Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, would you be happier? What if you had caught that fly ball in the last inning, would your team have won the game? What if you had bought that stock with your life savings, would you be a millionaire today or a penniless pauper?Now it's your turn to play this mind game.What if …?Rich Strack can be reached at

katehep11@gmail.com.