What are the lessons?

Image by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District
Familiar faces vie for table tennis glory

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District and URS Corporation have held ping pong leagues for several years and ultimately hold a championship tournament on the seventh-floor patio of their downtown Los Angeles office building.

This year’s Pingpong Extravaganza men’s championship was held July 26, featuring a chili dog lunch to raise funds for and promote membership in the District-sponsored Toastmasters club.

“Another great year,” said Ed Louie, member of Essayons Toastmasters Club 988 and One-Alarm Chili chef. “We had some scheduling issues, so only the men’s final was held today.”

In the men’s division, it was an all-District final as ACE-IT contractor Bee Cha won three sets to one against David Coltharp of the asset management division.

Corps vs. Corps lined up as the women took the table on July 31. Perennial finalist and 2006 champion Rosa Ramirez, programs and project management division lost a hard fought battle to Roxanne Vidaurre, engineering division.

This fun rivalry got its start when Ed Louie attended a Toastmasters meeting in URS’ conference room and noticed a ping pong table in the patio area. A URS Toastmasters member asked him if he would like a quick game after the meeting. After the match, the two decided it would be fun if the district and URS challenge each other to a friendly ping pong match. From that point in 2006 to present, it’s two wins for URS men and five wins for the Corps men. For the women, its four wins for URS and two wins for the Corps women. The Corps is looking for future men and women players to join.

“If this year is any indication, the men and women of the Los Angeles District and URS Corporation will continue this friendly challenge, and I may have to add another ‘alarm’ to my chili,” added Louie.

Question by Just critic!: What are the lessons?
Once upon long…long time there was a beautiful princess that had a very nice dream… she had a baby. As a princess she had it all…beauty, a castle and the most important, true love. She was a great dancer, but even that did not make her feel complete. She prayed and prayed and her dream became true, she was having a baby. But not just one, they were twins. She had a double blessing.

When they started growing Mom J told them:

“Kids come here, I want your help with a mission,” said Mom J looking into the eyes of her kids and finding many questions.

“A mission? Where?” They asked.

“Now that you are growing up, you are going to live in the bridge.”

“In the bridge, Mom?” Asking with the belief that something was wrong.

“Yes, in the bridge,” responded Mom J.

“But Mom it’s cold, how can we live in a bridge?”

“It will just be until you grow and learn that once you learn the lessons of the bridge, you won’t abandon it,” Mom J responded.

“And what will happen if we want to go back to the castle?”

“Go back to the castle whenever you want, after your learning process. But in the castle you will not learn all the lessons… In the bridge as it is not your home you will see how the learning emerges in many ways.”

“But Mom we can see also bees on the bridge…”

“Learn from the bees,” responded Mom J. “Choose all the scenarios to learn. Think that everything is a lesson. You have to prove that you have good grades all the time in the test of life.”

“But Mom there are owls everywhere on the bridge. They are always searching for our privacy.”

“Teach them the three important lessons with your silent examples;
What is good?
What is love?
What is peace?”

“But if you want to teach that, you have to search and learn in real way. So live in the bridge for while and discover the lessons.”

“And what will happen if we loss our patience?”

“You can’t, you’re in the bridge for a special purpose that you will have to discover.”

“But Mom why do you send us to the bridge?”

“That is the jobs of the moms and dads; we raise our babies in the bridge… so they can learn to be a bridge.”

Give your answer to this question below!