Like millions of other older people, I have become a pickleball enthusiast (or “crippleball,” as one of my friends calls it). I play at least twice a week, and I’m not bad for a 73-year-old. I win more than I lose, and when I lose, I, of course, blame it on my partner. Seriously, I make my fair share of unforced errors. Sometimes my partner and I fall way behind and are in danger of being pickled (losing 11-0). When we fall way behind but regain the serve and the chance to win a few points, I often turn to my partner and say Jim Carey’s classic line from this scene in the film Dumb and Dumber:[i]

“So, you’re telling me there’s a chance.” I have always thought the movie Dumb and Dumber was, well, dumb. But I always remember that scene and the wisdom behind that famous line. It is amazing what we can do when we believe. Or, as the song from The Prince of Egypt tells us, “There can be miracles when you believe.” Believing was a primary theme of one of my favorite TV series, Ted Lasso. In the film Rudy, Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger defied the odds by believing he could play college football at Notre Dame, even though everyone told him he was too small. As I watch the current NBA postseason, the commentators often remark on how much better a player is if he plays with confidence.

We see the power of belief everywhere in sports. It’s hard to win without it. But it’s not just a sports phenomenon. I used to religiously watch the TV series M*A*S*H. I don’t remember many of the episodes, but I often think about the one where the doctors run out of morphine. The injured soldiers are in great pain, but there is no medicine to give them. So, what do the doctors do? They tell the soldiers they are giving them a shot of morphine, even though it’s a placebo. The soldiers believe they are receiving morphine, and, miraculously, their pain lessens.

 There is a tradition in my family and in the church I was raised in of writing a personal history. Most are about 25-50 pages and offer a brief summary of the person’s life. I decided to take a deeper dive. I once listened to an interview with actress Mary-Louise Parker, who was promoting her new book, Dear Mr. You. The book consists of a series of letters she wrote to the men in her life, both real and imagined. Taken together, the letters form a biography of her life. Ms. Parker inspired me to do something similar. I wrote letters to my parents, my wife, Janene, my bosses, God, and each of my five kids, recounting experiences I had with each. Two years later, those letters totaled almost 900 pages!

What do I do with a 900-page tome? I couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to buy it. I figured my kids might read it, at least the letter to them, and maybe a few grandkids might read a few parts. But reality hit me. Everyone is busy with their own lives, creating their own histories, and few, if any, would care much about mine. After a generation or two, no one would read even a part of it, and no one would care about me or my life’s experiences. In short, I lost all belief in the project and was ready to just forget it. It wasn’t even worth the cost of toner and paper to print it out.

But then a book saved me.

I recently read The Power of Beliefs[ii] by one of my favorite authors, positive psychologist Shawn Achor. To live a happier, more successful, and more fulfilling life, Achor suggests we develop these seven core beliefs:

• My behavior matters.
• I am grateful.
• I matter.
• I have something to give.
• I am not alone.
• This work is meaningful.
• There is something greater than me.

My personal history now has a different meaning for me. I now realize I wrote it less for posterity and more to strengthen these core beliefs. Kahlil Gibran once said, “To be able to look back upon one’s life in satisfaction is to live twice.” After 73 years, I can say I am generally satisfied with my life. It has been fun to relive and, in some cases, reimagine my experiences, with the benefit of hindsight and, hopefully, a bit of wisdom. Or, as Mark Twain said about his biography: “It is the truest of all books because it consists mainly of extinctions of the truth, shrinkings of the truth, partial revealments of the truth, with hardly an instance of plain, straight truth.”

The same could be said about my letters.

One of my all-time favorite movies is Back to the Future.[iii] Although some of the jokes and gags have become dated, its underlying theme remains timeless: Marty McFly can go back in time and change history.  As you will recall, at the beginning of the film, George McFly (Marty’s father) is the epitome of nerdom. He works for Biff, who bullied him in high school. But when Marty McFly goes into the past, this happens:

That punch changes everything. When Marty returns to the present, he finds a father he hardly recognizes. George has become super cool; even Biff, his high school bully, now works for him. In that one high school moment when George told himself he could do something meaningful to protect someone he loved, he changed his future forever.

No, I didn’t create a scene in my history where I punched a bully to save Janene. But reviewing my life made me realize how much I have to be grateful for. The experiences I had were meaningful and mattered to me and to others. I am not alone. I developed relationships that have lasted for decades. I can do hard things. In short, writing my history has cemented those core beliefs in me, and in so doing, will change my future.

I continue to struggle with Achor’s last core belief: There is something greater than me. I no longer regularly attend the church I was raised in, or I’m on emeritus status, as I like to call it. But researchers of both the believer and nonbeliever variety agree that a belief in a higher power improves the quality of our lives. According to Shawn Achor, studies show that people with religious beliefs live between 4 and 6.8 years longer than those without a religious affiliation, and have higher levels of happiness and mental well-being. And the greater a person’s commitment to their religion, the greater the positive effect on their happiness.

I will save the details of my spiritual journey for another time. Suffice it to say that I have a hope of a higher power, but I cannot say I have knowledge or even a strong belief in one. But I can acknowledge the benefits of having such a belief. In the film Overcomer,[iv] a young cross-country runner, suffering from asthma, finds God. In doing so, she strengthens each of Achor’s core beliefs. Here is a scene from the movie:  

Knowing that we were created and loved by God can be uplifting and a balm to a struggling soul. Although I have not felt God’s love in any personal way, I can still be grateful. And I am. I realize I hit life’s lottery, being born where I was and to whom I was, being blessed with so many wonderful family and friends, and never having to worry about my family’s needs. I wish everyone could say the same.   

When it comes to my letters comprising my personal history, I can say, “So you’re telling me there’s a chance” that others will read them. But then, the real value of those letters might not be for others, but for me. Reliving the positive aspects of my past will have a similar positive impact on my future, knowing that I am not alone, that my past actions mattered to others, that I can overcome challenges and the loss of loved ones, and that, at least for me, my life has had meaning.

I hope, no, believe, everyone can say the same.

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[i] Dumb and Dumber:

• Production Companies: New Line Cinema and Motion Picture Corporation of America (MPCA)
• Directors: Peter Farrelly and Bobby Farrelly
• Writers: Peter Farrelly, Bennett Yellin, and Bobby Farrelly
• Starring: Jim Carey, Jeff Daniels, and Lauren Holly
• Release date: December 16, 1994

[ii] The Power of Belief, by Shawn Achor, Copyright 2026, published by Crown Currency, an imprint of Crown Publishing Group.

[iii] Back to the Future:

• Production Companies: Universal Pictures, Amblin Entertainment, and U-Drive Productions
• Director: Robert Zemeckis
• Writers: Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale
• Starring: Michael J Fox, Christopher Lloyd, and Lea Thompson
• Release date: July 3, 1985

[iv] Overcomer:

• Production Companies: Affirm Films and Provident Films
• Director: Alex Kendrick
• Writers: Alex Kendrick and Stephen Kendrick
• Starring: Alex Kendrick, Priscilla C. Shirer, and Cameron Arnett
• Release date: August 23, 2019