WhatGoesAroundComesAround_DavisRob

stuck it out for three sets. Spencer rarely finds someone at a place like
this who lasts more than one, unless it’s the pro. Even then, they usually
don’t last more than two. But Rob, just a hint. The next time you plan a
game of tennis with Spencer, try to remember not to bring out the
backgammon game first.”
“Now ya tell me,” I frowned, as we all had a good laugh.
When we returned from that vacation, Spencer and I stayed in touch, in
time becoming good friends. Slowly, I learned about why sports had
played such a prominent role in his life. Spencer and his brother Jerry
had grown up in Brooklyn, New York, the sons of troubled parents.
Their mother had severe mental and emotional problems and she spent
much of their early years in various city institutions. Their father was
unable to cope and the boys spent a big chunk of their formulative years
in a “Boy’s Home” with little parental guidance or influence. Sports
were Spencer’s refuge.
When he returned home from Vietnam, he had begun his career, married
Laurie and started playing tennis. Success had followed in all areas, but
dark clouds were brewing. Perhaps it was the birth of his daughter,
Victoria and the need to confront his own personal experience with
parenthood that kicked it off, but for whatever reason, things started to
shift. The euphoria of Victoria’s birth gave way to the realities and
restrictions of a new baby. Spencer and Laurie began experiencing
tremendous stress in their marriage. Business for the first time in all his
working years seemed to be undergoing a downturn. All of a sudden he
started getting hit with stomach problems.
Over the next couple of years Spencer’s decline accelerated. Health
problems plagued him, making any athletic activity extremely difficult.
The business he had built so successfully declined to the point where he