She was taunted by Bobby Riggs when he said he could beat any woman in tennis, because women could not compete with men. No doubt he was just a male chauvinist pig talking loud and making noise. She took the challenge match seriously, he did not. She was a woman after all, how hard could it be to beat her? Billie Jean King wiped the court with him and graciously held her head up high when she left with the trophy in her hands.
I LOVE these words from Bille Jean as they encourage us to go for it:
BE BOLD!
– Billie Jean King
If you’re going to make an error, make a doozy! And don’t be afraid to hit the ball.
She led the way in tennis for women to be seen an equal, no matter their race, color or sexual preference. She has taken a great deal of flack AND held her head high as she walked onto different courts. I just read that she is going to back to college at the age of 81, to finish her degree. GOOD FOR HER! Billie Jean King is still breaking down stereotypes and hitting to ball.
My encouragement for you (and me!) is to be bold, get out there and hit the ball. Every swing is not the championship winning shot. Every serve is not the game winning blow. And everything you do does not have to be the end all, be all, perfect thing to do to take your life to the next level. Some days just getting up, getting ready and swinging the racket is the way to keep things moving forward. Some days we face a ground breaking match against a pig headed man, and other days we just practice being us and getting things done. Keep active, keep working , and keep getting ourselves ready for that big match up. So get out there and hit that ball!!!
And by the way, when Billie Jean King beat Bobby Riggs, she gave him a baby pig to take home!
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