I have spent most of last night and this morning finishing up the details for our second intergenerational spelling bee to be held at the senior center tonight. We have about 20 contestants, evenly split between seniors and kids. Last year's competition was great fun and I expect the same tonight. Any competition can make one nervous, I suppose, but this is all in fun and it's really more about the fun and interaction than it is about the competition. And yet... One of last year's contestants seems stuck still on the fact that she missed the word "graffiti" and one of tonight's contestants has twice told me she hopes she doesn't embarrass herself. I wonder about that sense of embarrassment. As one ages I would like to think that you learn to care much less about what other people think of you and grow to be more comfortable in your own skin. After all when you're dead and gone people are much more likely to remember that you had the courage to stand up in front of a bunch of people and take a chance than the fact that you missed one letter in an attempt to spell "punctuation" (a word that tripped me up in one of my childhood spelling bee competitions). Even as we age, or perhaps particularly as we age, it's important to remember what our parents told us over and over: "Just try." Sometimes trying is enough. Winning is just the icing on the cake. And embarrassment? What's better than a chance to laugh at yourself?
