With high scoring, exotic drillings, lane conditions, and bowling balls that leave you talking to yourself, we have a tendency to forget the simple things of this game.
Recently I lost a very good friend, and while at his funeral I was approached by a senior bowler who handed me a poem. He said a senior bowler had written it and wanted me to have it.
Mrs. Bernice Vestal wrote the poem, and she was kind enough to grant me permission to reprint it. I think it puts our game into perspective.
The more I learn, the less I know,
This frustrating feeling has got to go;
I go out to practice, I know what to do,
I still miss my mark, guess I didn’t follow through.
OK, I’ve got it! I’ll keep my eye on the mark,
But my ball goes inside it now, I’m back in the dark;
I know, I’ll move forward just a little bit,
I’m too far from the foul line, maybe now I’ll hit.
I pick off the 10-pin when I throw to the right,
Well, I am getting older, maybe it’s just my eyesight;
I rush to the foul line and in my haste,
I pick off the 7-pin, must have bent at the waist.
Rushing the foul line, I’ve done quite a lot,
So maybe that’s why I’m missing my spot;
Slow down, speed up, what is one to do?
I’ll keep my eye on the mark, and maybe I’ll follow through.
OK, now I got it, I really know now,
I finally got a strike but, I don’t remember how;
I’ll never be a pro but, at least I know why,
I just like to bowl, and that’s why I try.
If I struck every time and rolled a perfect score,
I’d soon lose interest, and it would be a bore;
I’ll stick with the bowling, I’ll bowl good, I’ll bowl bad,
But when it is over, think of the fun that I’ve had,
The people I meet, the friends that I love,
The spirit of competition, precedes all the above.
Bernice will soon be 74 years young and had bowled for more than 30 years when she and her husband, Allen, took a 15-year break from the sport. “We decided to try bowling again and just love the way we have been accepted and treated on the league.” They currently bowl in the Bowlerama STARS senior league and truly enjoy the friendships of everyone there.
“I don’t write my poems for money,” she said. “I write them to make our world a better place.”
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In the August issue of Bowling Digest, Johnny Petraglia and Roger Dalkin have different views on the virtue of Sport Bowling. Dalkin has always been in favor of Sport Bowling, but Petraglia says Sport Bowling is not the answer.
I agree with Johnny.
Sport Bowling simply caters to a select audience and doesn’t address bowling as a whole. Personally, I like the Sport condition, and I see a place for it in state and national tournaments. I am more concerned with the proliferation of high-tech bowling balls and pins.
I was recently in a pro shop, and everyone there from owner, employee, and customer was laughing about the number of bowling balls flooding the market. The best of bowlers can’t keep up with the changes in the balls.
My ABC entry form allows a bowler to bring eight balls to the tournament. How ridiculous is that?
One of the first PWBA telecasts using the Sport condition was a scoring disaster. Nobody can expect any television network to promote professional bowling with amateur scores.
With bowling suffering a sucking chest wound, the last thing it needs is a Sport condition bandage.
See you on the lanes.
Don Wright is a member of the Bowling Writers Association of America. Visit his home page.