| I consider myself to be a pretty religous person. I try to go to church when I can and I try to be a good person and treat others the way that I would like to be treated, but I almost feel bad when I say I put more time and effort into sports then I do any other religous activity.Not that sports is bad or anything, but I used to feel pretty guilty about wanting to play my Little League games or driving out to the ballpark on a day that I would normally be at church! That is until one day I realized why I love the game so much... As I sat on my butt watching SportsCenter,?a segment came on about a young kid with Autism on the boys high school basketball team (For those who seen it please bare with me). This kid who never played in a regulation game before gets subbed into the game for about 5 minutes and sinks 6 three pointers and ends the game with 20 points. I have never seen a small gym get so crazy, it was hard to tell which fans were there for the visitors team and which were for the home team because everyone was yelling for this kid. Then in the interview the kid talked about how he has always wanted to play in a game and could not because of his condition. And he talked about how for those few minutes he felt like a normal kid and more! Then with the Dad and Coach talking you had to have no heart not to pretend you got something in your eyes (). It was at that moment more than any other that I realized just how much these sports mean to us. They are not just games played for fun and exercise, they are testiments to our charector and faith. I can not begin to tell you how many times I played baseball and felt something deep inside that told me this is where I am suppose to be. I don't want to get to spiritual and talk about God or anything cause this is a Sports Talk website and I'm no preacher, but there is something more to these sports that we play than just fun and exercise. I was not born with the ability to speak, sing or play an instrument. I go to church and contribute only as a butt in a seat. I have no real way of expressing my beliefs through talents, but when I put on my glove and take my position between 2nd and 3rd you can not tell me I am not doing what I was put on this earth to do. The impact these games have on us and the impact they can have on others is unlike anything else I have ever seen. There are few things in this world that can give goosebumbs and make you eyes water like a 45 year old women watching Beaches. Getting married, seeing you first born for the first time, or maybe walking your daughter down the aisle are all valid reasons for letting your manly shield down and letting out a few sniffles. But beside those things what other event breaks us down like sports. What else brings us to tears and fights like sports. We defend men we really don't know and share joy in seeing a player doing it the right way. We love talking about the saints of the games we love, whether it be Jordan and Magic, Montana and Rice or Ruth and Gehrig. And we want nothing more than to pass on our love for the game or team to our friends, brothers, sons, and daughters. Its never just a game or just a team to me. Its my belief, its my charector, its my religion! My saints and prophets are Jackie Robinson and Willie Mays, my devil is the LA Dodgers,?my pastor is Jon Miller (SF Giants Announcer), my congregation is the fans and teammates, and church is on the diamond. Whether your church is on a court or field you must admit there is something more to these games we love. You can believe these games just came about by some BIG BANG of ideas from bored guys years and years ago or you can believe in the CREATION of a game of meaning and passion. Whatever you believe you can't deny?the feeling of belonging and joy everytime you play this thing we call sports... |
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