The Bi-Weekly Ezine from Gurdy.Net

I have to admit it, I'm as programmed and conditioned as the next guy! Consequently, I am allowing myself the luxury of basking in the reflected glory or a couple of great sporting wins this weekend. As the taxi driver who took my to Dublin airport in the early hours of this morning said, Dublin's great win in yesterday's All-Ireland (Gaelic football, just in case you weren't sure what I was talking about) will 'be great for the people's morale'. And, with apologies to my Australian Eziners, Ireland's win in the Rugby World Cup on Saturday will do much the same for the country.

It's funny how something like sporting achievement can alter a whole nation's state of mind. Following France's World Cup Win in 1998, the French economy experienced excpetional growth (by French standards) and there's many an Irish person who wouldn't be averse to the idea that Ireland's 'Celtic Tiger' was born in Rome's Olympic Stadium one balming Summer night in 1990 when Ireland's World Cup heroes exceeded all expectations in getting to the competition's quarter finals.

Ireland's historic victory in New Zealand on Saturday begs a serious question though. Why would apparently responsible adults need such sporting exploits to raise a nation's spirits? Are the people of Ireland not already focused? Well, having just returned from Dublin, I can confirm that they are... a quick read of Ireland's newspapers will confirm that Ireland, like many peoples at this present time, are focused on the wrong things - recession, depression, fear and panic.

Isn't it time that we all grew up and started thinking, acting and living from a different state of mind? Could it be that we could all excel on the most important field of endeavour... the act of living!