The Daily Grind with Matt Clarke

We Love Pickles

Written by Matt Clarke | April 21, 2026

The families were bored, just sitting around, after a few of them golfed in the morning, with nothing much to do. It was during a time when life had no screens to babysit or entertain us. In search of an activity, they discovered they had a badminton court, but no equipment. Rummaging through the property, they cobbled together what they could- a few ping-pong paddles, a whiffle ball, and off they went. After lowering the badminton net, they made up a few rules, and in 1965, pickleball hit the scene. A quick little game with an awesome name was born out of friendship.

When my wife, Susan, and I were invited to play with some friends, I thought it was a risky proposition. First, it sounded a lot like exercise, and that concept lives outside of Susan's color palette. Second, it was going to be a pretty warm day, which would introduce the concept of sweating, a skin condition reserved for the beach or a sauna, not particularly acceptable when coupled with the aforementioned exercise. That said, we love our friends, and we love pickles, so we gave it a shot.

We had a blast. I ran around a lot, my reluctant partner hit some really nice serves, and we played and laughed until the body clock stopped us just shy of the moment of perspiration. Heck, we even got a lecture from the HOA police for parking on the grass and playing our music too loudly. An all-around win

After the marathon 54-minute sporting event, we retreated to some shade to recuperate. We hung out, had some great food, laughed at and with each other, and then sat down together and watched a video one of our friends made commemorating a trip many of us took to Honduras years ago. With music playing and watching footage of us carrying a 400-pound concrete latrine base through the winding, wooded trail together with smiles on our faces, I sat there thinking, "How lucky am I to have such great friends?" A heavy load is meant to be carried together.

"The seeds of good deeds become a tree of life; a wise person wins friends."(Proverbs 11:30) 

 

Friends help friends. Want to win in life? Win some friends. Want to win in business? Win some friends. Want to win some friends? Be a friend. Want to strengthen friendships? Do things together, with each other, for each other, and for others.

Some of the strongest friendships I've made over the years are with people I've played and served together. People who have been with me in situations where there is no hierarchy, only shared labor, challenge vulnerability, raw emotion, and yes...sweat.

At work, we always remind ourselves that we want to be people that our partners and vendors desire to work with. We want to be a company that, if given the choice between us and anybody else, they choose us because of the integrity we work with and how we treat and honor them. We want to be professional friends. And over the years, those people have stepped up when we needed it most. And we've done the same. Friends help friends.

When those friends in Puget Sound took a hodgepodge set of mismatched equipment and passed it through the filter of friendship, they planted the seeds of a tree that would grow into a beloved game for people of all ages to enjoy together. And when a hodgepodge group of friends gathers together to do good for others, it plants the roots for a life of meaning, growth, and joy. And most importantly, when the winds of life blow, the tree bends, and we find ourselves in a pickle, it's those roots of friendship that keep us standing.
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