Last night my friends gave me a surprise chocolate cake with Good Luck written on top, as well as a large card with a Chinese dragon which they had all signed. I was totally touched by the gesture and rejoiced in having a perfectly good excuse to to each chocolate cake for breakfast!

Which is what I did this morning, and had a fabulous practice. Dad set up the big traffic light on a timer, which is all part of the lighting system the Texas State Archery Association uses at tournaments. He set it on the ground lengthways, about 10m in front of me, and we practiced doing the alternating arrows system that they will use in Beijing, complete with flashing lights and beeping. I visualized the stadium that we saw in videos from the Olympics, and he played George Tech (making announcements). Here's an abbreviated version of what it will probably sound like in Beijing. Two whistles (or beeps, as the case may be) signal the archers to come to the line. One beep signals that the next archer may shoot. Three signal the end of shooting. The announcer typically talks right up to the point of the archer releasing the arrow, which can be a little nerve-wracking if you don't practice it.

Beep, beep! Archers to the line.
Beep! Chinese archer Chang Lin shoots first... A seven!
Beep! Carmichael is up... and she follows with an eight! Possibly a line-cutter nine, too close to call.
Beep! Chang Lin hesitates, what will she do? A nine, ladies and gentlemen! Fine shooting, from one of China's best.
Beep! Carmichael shoots a nine. That brings her total score to 17 points, possibly 18.
Beep! Chang Lin shoots a bull's-eye ten! Excellent shot!
Beep! Carmichael pulls through the clicker! She lets down, starts over. She needs a nine to tie, ten for the lead. Will she have the concentration to---TEN! Ladies and gentlemen, what a shot!
BEEP BEEP BEEP!
That takes us into our break with Carmichael in the lead at 27 points, and Chang Lin trailing by one point.

We practiced several scenarios--me trailing my opponent, my opponent having a breakdown, and of course lots of high-pressure ties and shootoffs. It was very good practice, helped me get my head in the right spot. I have to go in to work today, a wine tasting at one of the Sun Harvest Grocers, but I think this was the highlight of my day. The last end I was getting a little shaky, and I could have cinched the match if I'd shot a nine. The final shot felt pretty good, with good alignment and timing that could have been better. I ended up with an eight.

And you know something? I think that if I'd been on the field in China in that scenario, an eight when I needed a nine, a good shot instead of an incredible one... I think there would have been tears, but also pride and acceptance. I am entirely serious when I say that as long as I shoot good shots and do my best, I will be happy with my performance--whether it brings me nothing or it brings me gold. The things I have earned for myself, the mental strength, the experiences, the lessons... everything along this path has more value than any shiny metal disc. (Of course, the shiny dics come with a cool ring of jade inlaid into the back. I know silver has green jade... and gold gets white jade. How sweet is that???) But the point is that I've already won, in a way. And it's not the kind of reward anyone can ever take away from me.

I'm not packed. My bows still need minor tuning. I'm not even sure where my passport is. But I am ready. Seven days left.

"The most important thing in the Games is not to win but to take part.
Similarly, the most important thing in life is not to triumph but to struggle.
The essential thing is not to conquer but to have fought well."

Pierre Frédy, Baron de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympic movement