Another Long Offseason Begins...
I remember back in high school a few of us were sitting around getting ready for a fantasy hockey pool. Someone came up and asked why we got so worked up over things like that; after all "sports weren't real". At the time, I had no answer and simply ignored the comment, but I have since learned that I love sports precisely because -- out of all the ways we like to escape from reality -- it is by far the most real.
We all watch movies and TV shows and read books -- all are scripted and move inexorably towards a preordained ending. Yet sports is real life -- a warlike struggle, a duel to the death contained on a field, on a court or on a diamond. It is as real as life gets. And when once in a while, the truly remarkable happens -- like Kurt Warner going from bagging groceries to winning the Superbowl -- it is beyond the imagination of even the most far-fetched Hollywood writer.
As the Eagles lost again tonight and conclude yet another disappointing season, it marks 20 years since the city of Philadelphia has last won a sports championship. People talk about how the Leafs haven't won the cup, but at least most Torontonians know what it felt like to win the World Series -- arguably an even greater triumph in sports. I know that it is puzzling why I follow the Eagles with such devotion. Look in my room, you will find back articles of Eagles Digest -- the official publication of the Eagles that I had mailed up to Toronto for what was then a mini-fortune -- dating back to 1995 (i'm not even joking). In my basement, you'll find tapes of Eagles playoff games from 1990 and the 1991 Video Yearbook. If anyone has a copy of our Middle school yearbook, even my quotes in like gr 7 were about the Eagles. And I still read the Philly papers daily (especially the sports section).
I think this devotion borders almost on the religious. OK, that's going too far, and it is absurd to suggest that one should love sports in the same way one loves God, but there are certainly parallels between a devoted fan and a devoted worshipper. Every year, the fan puts his faith in the team, puts past disappointments behind him and thinks with an unquestioning faith "this is the year we do it; this is the year we FINALLY win the championship". It doesn't matter if the team has let him down in the past, the true fan will stubbornly remain true and doggedly keep cheering even when times are down. His faith will be tested along the way by many disappointments, but ultimately, there is the promise his faith will one day be rewarded with the ultimate goal -- a championship.
Of course, just like in religion there are fairweather fans; aka "bandwagon jumpers". Some people like to believe in God only when things are going well, when life is as it should be. As soon as life takes a wrong turn, off they jump from the bandwagon and turn their backs on God. This is something we often see in sports. The team plays well, and everyone's a fan; things go badly, and people immediately trash them, trash the superstars and laugh at those who stubbornly keep the faith. Anyone know a priest? That's actually not a bad sermon. haha
But yeah, there are many parallels between sports and religion. I cannot rationalize why i love a team from another country and another city; this devotion cannot be expressed in words. I don't know why bad things happen in sports, but I do know I'll be back next year for another exciting season of Eagles football. It was disappointing, but my faith has not been shaken.
As Phillies great Tug McGraw once said: "Ya Gotta believe!"
I remember back in high school a few of us were sitting around getting ready for a fantasy hockey pool. Someone came up and asked why we got so worked up over things like that; after all "sports weren't real". At the time, I had no answer and simply ignored the comment, but I have since learned that I love sports precisely because -- out of all the ways we like to escape from reality -- it is by far the most real.
We all watch movies and TV shows and read books -- all are scripted and move inexorably towards a preordained ending. Yet sports is real life -- a warlike struggle, a duel to the death contained on a field, on a court or on a diamond. It is as real as life gets. And when once in a while, the truly remarkable happens -- like Kurt Warner going from bagging groceries to winning the Superbowl -- it is beyond the imagination of even the most far-fetched Hollywood writer.
As the Eagles lost again tonight and conclude yet another disappointing season, it marks 20 years since the city of Philadelphia has last won a sports championship. People talk about how the Leafs haven't won the cup, but at least most Torontonians know what it felt like to win the World Series -- arguably an even greater triumph in sports. I know that it is puzzling why I follow the Eagles with such devotion. Look in my room, you will find back articles of Eagles Digest -- the official publication of the Eagles that I had mailed up to Toronto for what was then a mini-fortune -- dating back to 1995 (i'm not even joking). In my basement, you'll find tapes of Eagles playoff games from 1990 and the 1991 Video Yearbook. If anyone has a copy of our Middle school yearbook, even my quotes in like gr 7 were about the Eagles. And I still read the Philly papers daily (especially the sports section).
I think this devotion borders almost on the religious. OK, that's going too far, and it is absurd to suggest that one should love sports in the same way one loves God, but there are certainly parallels between a devoted fan and a devoted worshipper. Every year, the fan puts his faith in the team, puts past disappointments behind him and thinks with an unquestioning faith "this is the year we do it; this is the year we FINALLY win the championship". It doesn't matter if the team has let him down in the past, the true fan will stubbornly remain true and doggedly keep cheering even when times are down. His faith will be tested along the way by many disappointments, but ultimately, there is the promise his faith will one day be rewarded with the ultimate goal -- a championship.
Of course, just like in religion there are fairweather fans; aka "bandwagon jumpers". Some people like to believe in God only when things are going well, when life is as it should be. As soon as life takes a wrong turn, off they jump from the bandwagon and turn their backs on God. This is something we often see in sports. The team plays well, and everyone's a fan; things go badly, and people immediately trash them, trash the superstars and laugh at those who stubbornly keep the faith. Anyone know a priest? That's actually not a bad sermon. haha
But yeah, there are many parallels between sports and religion. I cannot rationalize why i love a team from another country and another city; this devotion cannot be expressed in words. I don't know why bad things happen in sports, but I do know I'll be back next year for another exciting season of Eagles football. It was disappointing, but my faith has not been shaken.
As Phillies great Tug McGraw once said: "Ya Gotta believe!"
posted by Anonymous at 10:48 PM
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