Laurie practices pickleball from the safety of her kitchen

By Laurie Stone

Isn’t it wonderful when you discover something that takes you out of our often-scary world? This happened to me when my friend, Lisa, and I stumbled upon pickleball, the new sports craze.

Picture badminton, ping pong and tennis all at once while you smack a fist-sized wiffleball back and forth across a net with paddles. I discovered three wonderful things while playing this game:

I was immediately put “in the moment” — It’s hard to think of anything else when that plastic orb is bouncing (or arcing or zooming) toward you. Plus, pickleball has more rules than I expected. Every play involves not only trying to hit the ball but having to remember where you stand, who serves, and the score.

We soon realized pickleball is like a modern-day minuet with steps and positions constantly changing. But it’s good for the mind and the world fades away.

There’s instant camaraderie — Lisa and I met four other players, mostly our age, except for one older gentleman in his 80s named Peter. They were all incredibly good. Lisa and I sat on a bench watching and were amazed.

Fast, explosive volleys went on for several minutes. They had lightning-fast reflexes and made mind-bending stretches to snag that ball. The four had been playing several years and it showed.

Although Lisa and I were rank amateurs, our pickleball gurus patiently explained the rules and encouraged us as we started to get a feel for the game. (Full disclosure: I accidentally hit Peter in the head with the wiffleball. He was wonderfully good-natured about it, thank God).

It’s fun to smack things around — There’s something satisfying about whacking that plastic ball. I haven’t played a racket sport since I was in seventh grade and my dad put up the badminton net.

Lisa used to play tennis and you could tell by her powerful hits that zoomed over the net. I was told I have a decent ‘spin’ but have no idea what that means. I just smiled and nodded.

Before long, that little plastic ball started to symbolize everything I don’t like — the news (whack!).… certain politicians (whack!). The fact that it’s impossible to lose weight past a certain age (double whack!) If only all problems could be solved so easily.

Then there was the next day. I had aches and pains in places I never knew existed. I texted Lisa and asked if she felt the same. “Yes!” she answered. “We used muscles not used in years!”

Amen. Despite all that, Lisa and I want more pickleball. But before we step back onto that court, we want to find a quiet spot we can peacefully lob the ball back and forth. I can work on not hitting people.

That said, look out world. Pickleball has two more fanatics taking it on, giving that ball a good what-for, exercising a new set of muscles, and blissfully tuning out the news.

Laurie Stone writes from the woods of Easton, Conn. Her blog, “Musings, Rants &Scribbles,” shares thoughts on growing up, older and (hopefully) wiser. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.