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Since the San Francisco Giants start a seven-day home stretch tonight, it's entirely likely that Barry Bonds will break Hank Aaron's 755 home run record before the end of this month.  To sit at the doorstep of such a momentous feat has to bring excitement such that most of us can barely imagine.

Bonds, however, must be quite the juggler to be able to deal with both excitement and hostility at the same time. Other than at home in San Francisco's AT&T Park, Barry Bonds is invariably subjected to vocally disapproving crowds.  Recent case in point:  homers #752 and #753 elicited boos at Wrigley Field last Thursday.

The reason for this post isn't to extol Bond's considerable talent, nor is it to debate the validity of the steroid suspicions surrounding him.  The reason is to consider the way he triumphantly deals with adversity.

Most people have a tough time dealing with ego blows.  Especially difficult to take are the times when we've done a wonderful job, done our best, yet still feel the sting of negativity.  Sometimes the wounds are slow to heal and those are wounds dealt on a relatively small scale.  Consider the effect when the emotional blood is let at regular intervals and on national television.

Yet, Barry Bonds still puts himself out there and he puts aside the negative distractions.  Like him or dislike him, the man's ability to achieve despite adversity is something to be admired and emulated.

"Right now I am trying to keep my focus on playing baseball and helping my team win. I recognize that what I am doing is very special and very historical but I will continue to concentrate on keeping things as normal as I can and go out there and do my job. It is exciting for all of us -– my family, my friends and especially my fans and I look forward to celebrating with them." --Barry Bonds - Journal Entry, July 20, 2007 - Barry Bonds.com

How many of the rest of us would have the same attitude?

NOTE:  One piece of inspiration for this post was Stephen J. Hopson's experiment, Secrets of Dealing with Adversity at Adversity University.  Pop on over to see what's up there and maybe give it a whirl for yourself.

Photo: NY Daily News