Family, Friends, and Faith Are the Most Important Things According to Coach Johnny Wooden
Yesterday I heard an interview recorded three years ago with the late Coach Johnny Wooden. It was so full of wonderful reminders that I listened to it twice. Listen to the interview.
Coach Wooden is loved by millions of people around the world. Arguably the greatest college basketball coach of all time, he was also a great teacher and perfect gentlemen.
I recall when I was a young man, I watched Johnny Wooden's UCLA basketball team win its 10th NCAA Basketball Championship. The final buzzer sounded. People rushed onto the court. A television reporter put the microphone up to Coach Wooden and asked him a question. Coach was looking in the distance trying to locate someone. Without pause, he politely said something to the effect of I'll talk to you later, I want to be with my family right now.
I will never forget that scene. I was just a young guy but it made a big impression on me.
He had made family was more important than the excitement of the moment.
I also remember going into a bookstore in San Francisco one day when I was in my twenty's. There was a book laying on a sale table and for some reason I picked it up. I thumbed through it and bought it.
I looked at it many times over the years. When times were tough and I doubted myself, this book comforted me and gave me hope. It was: They Call Me Coach by Johnny Wooden.
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You see, we need to know that there is someone out there who is good, who has honor and who has love. Especially when we are young we need someone to validate on the outside what we know in our heart is right.
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We don't need to get close to them or even know them. We just need to know that they exist.
Mostly we ourselves are compromised, corrupted, and not living the good life. We are not yet ready to make a commitment to what is right, not yet ready to be sorry for our resentments, not yet ready to let go of our bad habits.
But deep down we love what is right. We recognize the truth when we hear it. When we see someone who is truthful or good, we love and honor the good in them from a respectful distance. We are glad they are there. And one day, when we are ready, we will have a change of heart and mind.
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Coach John Wooden's 7 Point Creed
Be true to yourself.
Make each day your masterpiece.
Help others.
Drink deeply from good books.
Make friendship a fine art.
Build a shelter against a rainy day.
Pray for guidance, and give thanks for your blessings every day
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I just heard an interview with former UCLA Coach Johnny Wooden and he read this poem. For decades, it has been a perennial favorite of dads. One dad had a copy of it hung on his mirror where he could be reminded everyday. Listen to the interview.
A Little Fellow Follows Me
A careful man I ought to be,
A little fellow follows me.
I dare not go astray,
For fear he'll go the self-same way.
I cannot once escape his eyes,
Whatever he see me do, he tries.
Like me, he says, he's going to be,
The little chap who follows me.
He thinks that I am good and fine,
Believes in every word of mine.
The base in me he must not see,
That little fellow who follows me.
I must remember as I go,
Thru summers' sun and winters' snow.
I am building for the years to be,
In the little chap who follows me.
by Rev. Claude Wisdom White, Sr
Coach Wooden is loved by millions of people around the world. Arguably the greatest college basketball coach of all time, he was also a great teacher and perfect gentlemen.
I recall when I was a young man, I watched Johnny Wooden's UCLA basketball team win its 10th NCAA Basketball Championship. The final buzzer sounded. People rushed onto the court. A television reporter put the microphone up to Coach Wooden and asked him a question. Coach was looking in the distance trying to locate someone. Without pause, he politely said something to the effect of I'll talk to you later, I want to be with my family right now.
I will never forget that scene. I was just a young guy but it made a big impression on me.
He had made family was more important than the excitement of the moment.
I also remember going into a bookstore in San Francisco one day when I was in my twenty's. There was a book laying on a sale table and for some reason I picked it up. I thumbed through it and bought it.
I looked at it many times over the years. When times were tough and I doubted myself, this book comforted me and gave me hope. It was: They Call Me Coach by Johnny Wooden.
.
You see, we need to know that there is someone out there who is good, who has honor and who has love. Especially when we are young we need someone to validate on the outside what we know in our heart is right.
.
We don't need to get close to them or even know them. We just need to know that they exist.
Mostly we ourselves are compromised, corrupted, and not living the good life. We are not yet ready to make a commitment to what is right, not yet ready to be sorry for our resentments, not yet ready to let go of our bad habits.
But deep down we love what is right. We recognize the truth when we hear it. When we see someone who is truthful or good, we love and honor the good in them from a respectful distance. We are glad they are there. And one day, when we are ready, we will have a change of heart and mind.
________________________
Coach John Wooden's 7 Point Creed
Be true to yourself.
Make each day your masterpiece.
Help others.
Drink deeply from good books.
Make friendship a fine art.
Build a shelter against a rainy day.
Pray for guidance, and give thanks for your blessings every day
____________________________________________-
I just heard an interview with former UCLA Coach Johnny Wooden and he read this poem. For decades, it has been a perennial favorite of dads. One dad had a copy of it hung on his mirror where he could be reminded everyday. Listen to the interview.
A Little Fellow Follows Me
A careful man I ought to be,
A little fellow follows me.
I dare not go astray,
For fear he'll go the self-same way.
I cannot once escape his eyes,
Whatever he see me do, he tries.
Like me, he says, he's going to be,
The little chap who follows me.
He thinks that I am good and fine,
Believes in every word of mine.
The base in me he must not see,
That little fellow who follows me.
I must remember as I go,
Thru summers' sun and winters' snow.
I am building for the years to be,
In the little chap who follows me.
by Rev. Claude Wisdom White, Sr
