Golf Comfort usually comes from something familiar and known, versus something unfamiliar and foreign to us. For me, this type of comfort comes whenever I play a round at Westmount Golf & Country Club − the course where I spent my formative years loving and learning the game. While my games there these days are few and far between, this summer, I managed to get out one morning, joining my dad and a couple of his friends for nine holes. I’ve played these holes hundreds upon hundreds of times. And, even if it has been a couple of years since the last time I teed it up there, the club breeds familiarity. The moment I drive my car through the gates and step out into the parking lot at this private club (perennially ranked as one of the top 20 courses in Canada), I’m at ease. I know the holes like I know old friends whom I have not talked to in a while and we jump right into the middle of a conversation as if no time has passed. Like those amigos, the course and I share countless memories which elicit feelings of comfort. I remember the time I made birdie on the 13th hole, drove the ball out of bounds on the 16th or sunk a long putt to save par on the 18th. Food is another thing we find comfort in. On the golf course, it’s often the food you enjoy before or after your round that becomes a ritual. As a junior at Westmount, I often had a muffin before my game. Then, as we reached the 8th hole, my friend and I would start chanting “jumbo hot dog, jumbo hot dog,” in reference to that reward that awaited us at the halfway house providing us energy – and a degree of comfort – as we headed to play our back nine. Fall is a time when, as temperatures cool, we enjoy more comfort foods. A latte or a cortado are my go-to comfort drinks. For food, especially in the fall, I love a good homemade pot pie. How about you? What foods bring you comfort? Besides seeking comfort to feed our appetites or combat feelings of unease, the pandemic also forced many of us to go outside of our comfort zones. Whether it was learning a new skill, or taking up a new hobby, or just the simple fact of following all of the COVID-19 safety protocols such as social distancing, mask wearing and sanitizing constantly. And that is not a bad thing. Discomfort is often required to grow, adapt and strengthen our character. COVID-19 caused golf to adapt some new rules – such as leaving in the pin and no rakes in the bunkers. After a season of following these protocols, we’ve become comfortable with the changes. So take time to seek comfort and also try to go outside of your comfort zone once in a while. Maybe that’s trying a new golf course. Maybe it’s playing with someone you’ve never had a game with before. Or take up a hobby you were always too fearful to try. Whatever you do, or wherever you are when you are reading this issue this fall, here’s to creature comforts and the solace that they bring. CSANews | FALL 2021 | 45
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