Throwing boulders..............

Admittedly I am not a huge fan of Tiger Woods, never have been, even in his heyday. That's why I find it slightly amusing that I am coming to his defence. I know, I know, he is a horrid man, he cheated repeatedly and with great enthusiasm on his wife. He let his sponsors down, and destroyed his reputation among his followers. Scum, stupidity at it's finest, idiot, woman hater, *#^@!, and so on. Yet, I pause. Words keeps bobbing up to the surface of my mind: repentance, forgiveness, repentance, forgiveness. Radio, TV, newspapers, and water cooler gossip have all weighed in on the Tiger issue. Many with glee and satisfaction; for you see, a hero, seemingly indestructible, had fallen. Many taking issue that his 'apology' was not sincere enough for their liking. Others go into great detail about what they would do to "their man" if he followed Tiger's example. The jokes have been nonstop. What has been missing is the ability or idea that he truly can repent and become better. I have no idea what can be found in the deepest parts of his heart and mind, and I feel like it is none of my business. I do know there is hurt there, deep hurt. Hurt that is not reserved, isolated, or owned by Tiger himself. Those closest, as usually is the case, suffer too. Men have stated openly over microphones that he is no longer a hero. I beg to differ. He still has a chance. A chance to show that we have the ability to better ourselves. Each of us are human, and because of that we are prone to make mistakes, big and small. Strong men and women, in my experience, are those on bended knee before their Maker. They come, in deep humility, with a broken heart and contrite spirit. Knowing that they have done wrong, ready to accept the consequences and praying for forgiveness and direction. I hope Tiger makes it through this, I really do. I hope that as he wades through this trial, caused by his own selfish and prideful actions, he learns. I hope he learns that actions have consequences. I hope he learns that there is a Father in Heaven, that he is loved, and he can find peace. I hope he learns that if he keeps moving forward he will be strengthened with wisdom and filled with tenderness for those around him. I don't envy him, it will be a long long journey; a hard soul wrenching journey. In the end, if he succeeds and gives all that he has, he becomes a hero once again. And when it is all said and done, those are the heroes we admire.