Melissa's Place

Once in a Lifetime

This weekend, Mark and I went to Peterborough for a visit. On Saturday, my dad took Jay and Mark golfing at a local course called Heron’s Landing. The morning was a lot cooler than the balmy 26 C of the day prior, and my dad found himself quite cold in his t-shirt and shorts. Luckily, Mark had a light jacket he could lend him for the first 8 holes, while he warmed up. Possibly this good deed had something to do with the karma surrounding Mark’s golf game. More than likely, it was a combination of the stars being in line, the skill Mark’s been accumulating for his whole 28 years 5 months and 22 days, the new driver called the Sasquatch and his impeccable form that contributed to the events at Hole #12 that fine morning. (It might have also had something to do with his fiancé’s love which he carries in his heart wherever he goes). Regardless, my brother and father stood witness as Mark stepped a few feet back from the tee-off and hit that ball, shielded his eyes as he watched it bounce….(“I think it’s short” he said)….and then disappear. It wasn’t until they approached the green that they realized the magnitude of what they had just witnessed…a Hole In One!

Mark gave Jay a high-five so hard that his hand stung (or so the Legend goes). He didn’t ride around on his golf club (he tells me he only does that in mini-golf). And the good people at Heron’s Landing celebrated this momentous occasion by giving him a gold bag tag that says, “Hole In One” and his name and the date. They are also going to send him a certificate. (It’s a protocol they are excited to use on the very, VERY rare occasion that they have opportunity.)

For those of you that aren’t golfers, a Hole in One is a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence. In fact, it’s more like a never-in-a-lifetime occurrence. It just doesn’t happen. Even the very best golfers can practice every day and never get a hole in one. Mark was ecstatic. He couldn’t wait to phone his dad. He couldn’t wait to phone his best friend, Jim. He was beaming with quiet pride.

We went home to see my mother that evening and had been there only a few minutes before I broke out the news, “Guess what?!? Mark got a hole in one today!”
“That’s nice,” she said.