I'm a HUGE sports fan. I love to watch the human body compete and know how much of what is being accomplished there isn't just raw talent, but it is the whole package and I think 80% what the athlete's mind thinks he or she can do.
I'm coming off a sport high. First there was my beloved Seahawks. I've been a fan from the beginning. They were the only team in Washington while I was growing up and my little brother and I fell in love with "Zorn to Largent" coming over the radio. I still grin when I think about the Super Bowl win! What a game!
Then by the end of that week we were watching the Winter Olympics. Man does it get any better? Hour upon hour of great athletes competing on ice and snow. Going down the slopes with speeds over 80mph! WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MINDS?!? And to see the sportsmanship.
I know my husband would rather I fast forward through the human entrust stories of the athletes in the spot light, but to me that is the real story. To come back after retiring from the sport because your husband thinks you should. To switch countries so that you can pursue your dream. To wake up at 5 each morning so you can have ice time. To follow your child for 17 years and never miss a competition. That to me is what really makes the Olympic worth watching.
Then to top it off I just finished watching the Paralympics. WOW! I'm not sure how I missed these before, but DANG! Now those people have what it takes to make a REAL athlete. I don't want to take away anything from any athlete, but to pick yourself up one more time with the odds stacked miles high against you is something else.
This year's slogan was all about an apostrophe. I was watching the closing ceremonies and they spelled out IMPOSSIBLE and a young man with no legs, grabbed a rope and then climbed 60 feet into the air with just his arms (oh, and one had was missing three fingers) and added an apostrophe to the word and it became I'M POSSIBLE! That's what those athletes are.
I swear I will no longer complain about a long training run or a race that just isn't going my way. I will stop today and be thankful that I do not have those physical challenges that lead to some of the toughest mental challenges. I will not complain! I will be thankful for a well body that can run, jump and compete--even slowly. I will be thankful that my body is whole and I will try harder to have a healthy body. Today I will take the apostrophe and put it in my tool belt and remember I'M POSSIBLE too!
~More to come, Doreen~
