The Fourth Quarter
“It is never too late to be who you might have been.”
Image Credit @genefoto
When I was young, I knew nothing about football. My high school was so small there weren't enough players to field a team, so I never learned the rules of the game.
My dad played football in high school when they had 8-man teams, but that was years before I was born. I cherish a photo of him playing quarterback in the 1920s, throwing the ball downfield.
I became a rabid football fan in my 40s. When I was in graduate school, I could afford to get season tickets because of the significant student discount. I learned the rules and knew who the players were. To say I love college football is an understatement. To this day, I count the days until fall and football. I text my kids in Arizona, Oklahoma, and Illinois during each game—multiple times—probably to my husband's silent dismay.
It seems complicated when you're younger to know the rules of the game. But you can learn them, even though that wasn't your initial experience. You can learn from others who have thrown the ball downfield. You can learn from others who are in their fourth quarter.
I like football because it's fast-paced...like life. It requires a strategy, like life. It has a fourth quarter, like life. The fourth quarter is a time to be okay with who you are, make amends, be at peace, and finish the game. The fourth quarter...it all comes down to that. It doesn't matter what you screwed up in the first half. This is when you get serious. No more fooling around.
I just finished reading The Man Who Was Afraid to Live by Miquel Montero, a story of a man named Daniel living a life of desperation and void of meaning. He was at the point of choosing not to have a fourth quarter because he found no joy or purpose in his life; however, his encounter with a stranger led him on a journey that would change everything. In the book’s introduction, the author shares that “everything we need to be happy, we in fact already have. Something so apparently simple which took me several years to understand. Perhaps the simple isn’t so simple when no one teaches you.”
I'm in the fourth quarter now, and I know that others are also in their fourth quarter, whether 55, 65, or 80. I have no time for fooling around, focusing on trivial matters, or wasting hours. I want to continue to learn from others, be intentional, find meaningful moments, reflect on my life’s journey, and contribute what I can to make a positive difference in others’ lives, which also, in turn, enriches mine.
We will all be in the fourth quarter of our lives whether we want to think about it or not. We can view it as depressing or as an opportunity. What can be done in the final quarter? Well, it's full of possibilities, and yes, sometimes anxiety and distress. But there's still time—a whole quarter!
Think about your fourth quarter. It might be now. It might be years from now. Be intentional. Think about what matters and who is important. Spend your time there and with them. It's never too late to make amends or to be present in the moment. It’s never too late to learn new things or a new skill. It’s never too late to be who you always wanted to be.
You alone can decide how your fourth quarter is played. Rumi has written, “It’s your road and yours alone. Others may walk it with you, but no one can walk it for you.”
I’ve learned that it’s my road to walk, my game to play, and I'm so grateful to have a fourth quarter.
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