Ramiros

An act of faith. 

I just love to watch him teach. 

Believing and beloving. 

After reading a passage from Strunk and White: The Elements of Style, I wrote, “Writing is an act of faith (trust) and felicity (intense happiness); writing is the ability to find an appropriate expression of one’s thoughts.” Every time I sit in this chair and begin writing, I’m demonstrating my faith in and commitment to this practice that brings me felicity. I may not always express myself well, but I can always express myself faithfully. I am a student of this craft of writing and to the practice of living life well. I am a student of master writers, teachers, and coaches. My job is to believe and to belove. To spend time in contemplation and to spend time in action. 

Two years ago, I was thinking about my friend and mentor, Ramiro Azcui, the IU women’s tennis coach. In my journal, I wrote, “I just love to watch him teach.” I spent ten summers working with Ramiro as an assistant coach at his youth tennis camps. That was one of my greatest joys of the experience, watching this master coach and teacher at work. Ramiro is a good man who loves kids and loves the game he teaches. This love is clear to anyone who sees working with kids. The same is true as he works with his coaching staff. He is a patient, and master teacher to the teachers as well.  

In The Talent Code, Daniel Coyle goes into detail about mastery coaching. He says that master coaches genuinely care and connect on a deep level. They don’t stand up front and give speeches, they stand beside and work closely with their students giving them brief, targeted, specific messages. They hold a vast library of knowledge but are skilled in choosing the most essential mini lesson and message for each specific moment. They encourage their students to stretch and reach and are there to support and encourage regardless of the results. After reading Daniel's book, I think one could summarize it by saying, "Go spend ten summers with Ramiro. THIS is what mastery coaching looks like.” And I did. And he is. I cannot count the moments I just watched him in action, teaching, nurturing, nudging, connecting and loving. Thank you, Ramiro. I am grateful for your mentorship and your friendship.

Believing is to have confidence, faith, or trust in someone or something. Beloving is to love with a deep sense of affection and connection.   

I was reading Marcus Borg’s Convictions and wrote these notes: “Believing” is about “beloving.” What we belove shapes our lives and has great transformative power. Beloving is to commit to a relationship of fidelity (faithfulness). This is what shapes our lives. Commitment. Loving dearly. Beloving.  

Beloving is an act of faith, as is writing. We need an appropriate active expression of our internal beliefs, thoughts, and notions. We need mentors and master coaches who stand alongside us. Not in front of us giving speeches, but beside us, caring, connecting, and encouraging. We need those who believe and belove as models for learning and living. We need to find our Ramiros to guide us, and we need to be Ramiros to those around us.