More Than a Rack - Day 6

I don't play pool. At least I didn't think I did. When I was young, my uncle Sid had this "casita" behind his house and inside he had a pool table my cousin Rosanne and I were never allowed to play on. So naturally, we were out there on Saturday mornings. When my mom and dad were first married, my dad worked for Frederick's Air Conditioning and right next door was a bar. He would occasionally stop and play a few racks with some of the guys before heading home. I don't think it ever occurred to my dad that he would one day have a daughter who would end up playing on a pool team, going to Las Vegas for national tournaments, or coming home to tell him about the "old man" she had just beat; but then again, he didn't know Johnny.

When I first started playing with Johnny, my dad wasn't too happy with the idea, neither was my mom. I think for my dad it was about me being a lady, in a bar, with other men looking at her or trying to be inappropriate; much like the women and men he would see at the bar by Frederick's. My mom just never agreed with the idea, even more so after we had the girls. They just felt it wasn't a place for me, but they didn't know Johnny or what the game meant to him. My dad would soon learn that pool was for Johnny what golf was for my dad. It was a way of life.

Growing up, Johnny had a pool table in his garage and would play out there with his dad. When they played, my father-in-law would never LET Johnny win. If he was going to beat him, then he was going to win fair and square; it's a lesson Johnny has never forgotten. Johnny talks about hot summer afternoons in the garage, crying when his dad would beat him over and over, or the moment when he was old enough to play with his dad and uncle's in the Bexar County league. They would be moments that Johnny would treasure forever and memories he looks back on often. Playing pool is more than just hitting some balls across a table with a pool stick. It's about strategy and endurance; about precision and stamina. It's also about self discipline and knowing when you've been beaten and with our league, it's about being a team.

Johnny has been playing pool since he could see over the table. He's a strong player and a respected opponent. When I watch him play, I'm always amazed at how he knows exactly where the ball is going to end up, how he sets himself up for the next shot and how he looks ahead at the next 4 balls before he even hits the first one. What's more amazing, is that I know all these things because of what he's taught me. But just like with his dad, he taught me Lesson #1...to never LET someone win; everyone has to earn their win. However, he chose one of our first dates to teach me that lesson, lol. Now, years later, I don't give anyone a chance. I play every game to win and to do my best, but not every game goes my way and I'm not always the better player. Lesson #2...there will always be a better shooter than you out there. I've always admired my husband's self-discipline when it comes to the game and the good sportsman he always is.

Johnny started our pool team, All On Cue, in the early 2000's and it quickly became a family team. In 2007, we won our first city tournament and a bid to Vegas for the national tournament. Since then, we've gone back to Vegas a couple of more times, we've added new players and lost some old ones, but family has always been a constant on the team; it's what Johnny prided himself on about this team. I eventually joined the team and my dad eventually came out to watch me play and realized that I wasn't THAT woman in the bar. After that, he made it a point to ask us about our team, how we were shooting and he was the first one I'd call from Vegas to give him the update on our place in the tournament. He knew Johnny wasn't that guy who took his wife to a bar and left her alone. He knew I went to the bar in jeans and flip flops, and not a low cut dress and stilettos and he knew Johnny would take care of me.

Playing pool is something Johnny and I enjoy doing together and our girls are very much aware of what pool means to their daddy. They encourage him to "go win daddy" or on weekends when there are big tournaments, they tell him to "bring home the big trophy." They understand playing pool is what we do; but they also know they will always come first and that pool will never be more important than they are. I've learned so much from Johnny about the game and about being an honest player. Integrity is something Johnny holds with the highest regard and it's what he expects of anyone who plays on his team, but it's also something other players admire him for. Often, I hear other players tell him how much they enjoy playing against him, even if they know they're going to lose, but because they know they will always get his A game; he doesn't half-ass anything, especially his game.

Today's picture reminds me of the lessons Johnny has taught me, not just about the game, but about life. At the same time, it reminds me of the way he depends on me to help him with those lessons, to remind him when he is starting to lose his cool, become impatient or too demanding of others. When I play, I sometimes will over hear others ask if I'm Johnny Garcia's wife, and someone will say yes and then they will nod their head, as if to say, "Ok, so that's why she shoots like that." LOL Not that I'm as good a player as he is, but because he has taught me well. I sometimes tease him about things like that, but deep down, when I hear those comments, I feel a sense of pride in being his wife and recognition that you can't just take me for granted as a player, because if I can beat Johnny Garcia, than I can beat them too.

Till next time...