OMG!!! One more sleep.....

OMG!!!! Really there is nothing more to say than that!!!
Oh My God:  I can't believe I will be flying out tomorrow ;
Oh My God:  I can't believe my dream set Jan 1/12 is coming to fruition;
Oh My God:  I can't believe that I am part of the Olympics again;
Oh My God:  I can't wait to see what unfolds in the next month
Oh My God:  THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

For those that have known me outside of  the volleyball world, you know that I am pretty calm, cool and not very excitable.  Even those inside the vb world, may know me as calm, cool and not very excitable.. Well, I gotta tell you that I have been all that up until today!!

It is one thing to make a dream on a vision board, or write a goal on a piece of paper or just daydream about a desire in your life.  Now, it is a totally different when that one thing is just a finger tip away. 

I AM EXCITED, JOYOUS, NERVOUS AND FEELING LIKE A KID AGAIN!!! 
MY GOAL IS TO BE A "YES WOMAN" and see what where that takes me!!!

As an athlete for many years, the coaches would set goals for us and plan out our 4-year cycle with qualifying for the Olympics as the main goal every quad.  It is amazing looking back how short 4 years is and how long it can be. 

When I first made the goal of wanting to be in the Olympics I was 13 watching the 1976 Montreal Olympics.  When I was a freshman at University of Michigan in 1981 (picture above), my goal was to one day be on the national team (not knowing this was the team that tries to qualify for the Olympics).  One year later, as a rookie on the national team, our far-away goal was to make it to LA. 

As of June 1984, we had still not qualified for the LA Games.  There was a remote chance that due to the Communist Eastern Bloc boycott (a different world back then) we may be one of the 3 teams selected to replace Russia, East Germany and Cuba. During lunch one day in Germany on a training week, Coach Lorne Sawula walked in and announced to the team, that YES we are one of the teams going - replacing Cuba.

OMG!!!

I looked at Tracy Mills and that moment is engraved in my mind to this day.  I had an out of body experience, chills and all with the realization that my dream set 9 years earlier was coming true.  Truly unforgettable!!!  What a powerful feeling to have experienced.  The Opening Ceremonies was the absolute Thrill of a Lifetime!!

OMG!!!!

For the 1996 Atlanta Games, we achieved the dream by beating Dominican Republic at the Continental Cup in Winnipeg.  As a 34 year old athlete (old at that time, again different era), I was realizing that there is no age barrier to accomplishing goals and pursuing dreams.

OMG!!

In Atlanta, I savoured every moment.  Took it all in.. gone was the wide-eyed innocence & ignorance of youth as I was in 1984, but knowing that many had tried this long road and had not made it to the finish line, and I was having a second chance,  I was going to capture it all. 

Remember, in 96, internet was just getting mainstream.  Ironically, I had a "blog" going back then.  I had each gal fill out a daily sheet of questions of what happened that day.  We faxed it back to Winnipeg to our team dentist who would then put it on the internet for a few others to follow.  hmmm wonder if those notes are still in cyberspace....

OMG!!!

Now in London,  I get to fulfill a dream again -  To be a part of the Olympics which has been embedded in my psyche for most of my life.  I get to assist this year's athletes and their families and make it their most memorable moment.

I woke up early this morning with my mind already in London!!!  I have the "butterflies" in my stomach and the OMG!! feeling just as I did as an athlete.  I can feel the energy of excitement and nerves that all the participants get as they inch closer to their goal. 

My goal is to bring the excitement of the Games to you for an insider's point of view.  I hope I can do that......

til I write from London!!!!

OMG - Dream Big!! because one day your dreams will come true!!
diane

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