I felt bad for Alex Rodriguez, the baseball great, because he endured a slump during the big playoff games. Lots of people jumped in to say how he was done, finished, kaput. And some commenters expressed a bit of glee because of his stunning salary. 

But I feel his story reminds us all that slumps happen throughout our life, and they can actually work for the good of mind, body and spirit in the long run. Mystics called them "dark nights of the soul" and they often came prior to time of great creativity and spiritual growth. 

A-Rod might not have the luxury of waiting for this to pass, as it likely will. In the meantime, he reminds us, too, that neither fame nor wealth can spare human beings certain things, like off seasons, slumps and dark nights.

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