This morning when I opened my email, I was welcomed by a mass of well wishes and encouragements for Ashira Lavine after she busted out of the WSOP Main Event on Day 1C. What happened next, touched Ashira deep in her soul and convinced her that there are blessings in every loss. Let me tell you how this came about.
At 10am Las Vegas time, I met Ashira online for today's 1-on-1 poker coaching focusing on debriefing yesterday's event and strategies for today's play. Before we started, I shared with her comments that had posted to yesterday's blog about her, The Face of a Poker Champion.
After she read the comments, this was her reply. It says it all:
From Ashira Lavine:
"To my wonderful support and energy team:
Thank you all so very much for your support. You all have given me a greater gift than you even know. More important than winning 100 Main Events, I got the priceless gift of my family finding out about this online.
Once my family saw the kind of support I was receiving from all of you, they let me know that they want to be a part of this element of my life–realizing how important it must be for me to have gone forward with this even though they didn't necessarily approve or understand.
Now my family has opened their hearts to it and realize it's not just a passing fancy, it's an endeavor and an important journey for me. I am grateful for every one of you and every moment you have held me in your hearts and minds.
And mostly, I am grateful for meeting and working with Donna and Greg. She is my life coach… we joke, that one day we'll talk about poker. She's helped me become a better person. More disciplined, calmer, happier, and I've learned things from her that carry over into my day-to-day life. I look forward to all of you experiencing what I've experienced, and I will continue to work on my "authentic self" (as Donna would say).
Life is good. I appreciate all of you more than I can express in words.
With love and sincerity,
Ashira
PS: We’ve only just begun. I will be expressing my continued gratefulness to you all for the many successes at the poker table that are coming."
Thank you Ashira. You have enriched our lives!
For everyone, remember my motto:
If you can't raise, don't call!
PS: Ashira says I must change Poker Coach to Poker Life Coach. What do you think?