Over last week's vacation, I had trouble keeping up?to?date on sports. While traveling, I only had short spurts of wireless connection in which I could rush to ESPN.com and cram in everything that I missed.
Looking back strictly from a sports perspective, it was a terrible week to be without daily updates. As if the beginning of March Madness weren't enough, the Miami Heat were riding a win streak of over 20 games and battled through some dramatic comebacks and tight finishes.
While away, though, I was reminded of an important lesson that sometimes escapes us sports fans in the heat of the moment when our teams are playing in a big game: sports are a form of entertainment. The world goes on no matter the result of a games or match. While the feeling of defeat may crush our souls and that of winning uplift us to a sense of euphoria, in the end it's just a game.
You may be thinking to yourself, "well yeah, of course." But, as sports fans, sometimes this phenomenon escapes us. We get too high when our team wins, too low when they lose, spend too much on jerseys, and invest far too much time in fantasy sports.
It's important every once in a while to step back and look at the bigger picture. Having perspective on a situation allows us to enjoy something for what it is. Watching, playing, and immersing ourselves in the game is an escape from the problems of everyday life.
Sometimes it's a small problem such as "I'll do my homework after the game," while other times sports can be used as a political gateway between conflicting countries. It can even be used as a way to uplift an entire community, as in New Orleans post?Katrina.
Sports can be a very special and powerful thing. The bonding of the members of a team creates lifelong friendships and memories, especially at non?professional levels such as high school or college. The memories, once formed, can never be taken away or diminished.
But sports can even be powerful enough to make people do pretty stupid things. Athletes receive death threats and constant insults on social media outlets like Twitter. LeBron James had a beer dumped on him after a clutch playoff win in the Boston Garden. In what other profession is this kind of treatment acceptable?
Athletes should not have to be subjected to this kind of treatment. Yes, we get angry and frustrated, but it's not the athletes who should take the brunt of our frustration. They don't make us angry, we make ourselves angry. We insist on the importance of each game. We create the idea that our team should win every game.
We get lost in the world of sports. It's easy to do. We like to think we're part of the team and that they care as much as we do. Sometimes this is in fact the case, but for most, it's just a job. We may think that athletes need to care as much as we do, but often times they don't. The athletes have been playing and training so long that they have learned how to lose and move on while many of us hang onto the wins and losses.
So next time you're getting a little too worked up about how your team is doing, remember that in the big picture it shouldn't affect the way you go on with your life. Don't let it extend beyond the final whistle or last out. Enjoy the game while it lasts, then it's time to move on or else-you're sacked!
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