I know there’s a difference between improbable and impossible. But for so many years a Cubs World Series championship has seemed not just improbable, but actually impossible.I remember so many long, hot summers spent watching Cubs teams that were so bad for so long that it seemed impossible—not improbable—that they’d ever turn things around. There were seasons where they lost 95, 96, 97 games, and fielded teams composed mostly of has-beens and never-weres.They signed big-name free agents that turned out to be busts. They drafted much-hyped players in the first-round, providing a glimmer of hope for the future, only to have disappointment follow as the young player’s career petered out at Double A Pittsfield, or even Single A Peoria.But then 2016 happened.Well, actually, some things happened in the years before that. Tom Ricketts bought the team. He hired Theo Epstein. He brought some guys with him. They revamped the organization, drafted well, made trades, signed free agents that (mostly) worked out.And in the course of five years or so, everything changed. Things got easier. Even the depths of losing seasons seemed like a necessary cold, dark winter with the promise of springtime ahead.Then It happened.So if this thing—It—that has seemed so impossible all my life has actually happened, and the world hasn’t ended, then what else might happen?World peace. Go big or go home. It’s unlikely, yes. But if the Cubs can blow a lead in game 7 and end up not losing the game, then why can’t Israelis and Palestinians come together? Why can’t we figure out a way to eliminate hatred? Sure, this stuff might be human nature, but so what? We don’t not try to do something just because it’s difficult.To paraphrase JFK’s “We choose to go to the moon” speech, we choose world peace not because it’s easy, but because it is hard. That’s the same reason Theo Epstein and his crew came to Chicago to rebuild the Cubs. And look what they did!Of course it’ll take time, but to borrow an ancient Chinese quote of which JFK was fond: A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. So let’s get started.Time travel. Look, 1.21 gigawatts should no longer be an obstacle to time travel. Neither should the flux capacitor. If Theo Epstein can figure out a way to build a Cubs team that leads the league in walks, then someone out there has to be able to figure out time travel. Doc Brown did most of the work when he fell off of his toilet and hit his head, so why hasn’t anyone built on that breakthrough?However, if someone does figure out time travel, then it’s imperative that they resist the urge to change anything. 1969 still has to happen. So does 1984. And 2003. And 2004. Ty Griffin, Earl Cunningham, and Lance Dickson, too. None of it can change. Space-time continuum and such.But concerns over changing the course of history shouldn’t dissuade us from figuring this out. George Washington wants to meet you.
Ripening avocadoes. Okay, there’s important and then there’s important. How have we permitted ourselves to live in a world where we have to wait for avocadoes to ripen? We’ve invented the turducken, yet we’re still stuck trying to use an avocado during the ten-minute window, five days from now, in which it will be perfectly ripe?There are few things in this world better than homemade guacamole, and when I want it, I want it now, not next week. Good luck doing anything with an unripe avocado. And no matter what the internet says, there’s no way to hasten the ripening. So I’m guacless. Unacceptable. Get on it, world.Improbable is not impossible. The Cubs have proven that. So let’s get started on these things. If we do a little bit everyday, then in five years we’ll have something. Like a World Series trophy. Okay, maybe not that, but you know what I mean.And although the problems above are big, there are probably things in your own life that seem impossible, too. They’re not. Unless you do nothing.So try, and see what happens. You might end up with perfectly ripe avocadoes, or something even better.Click here to receive an e-mail each time I write a new post! Guaranteed spam-free, unsubscribe any time IF YOU LIKED THIS POST I BET YOU'LL ALSO LIKE: The Years I Played BaseballPREVIOUS POST: I Won't Cry if the Cubs Lose, But if They Win...