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Two weeks ago I traveled up to the Bay Area to spend my mom's birthday weekend with her. She had managed to get 4 tickets to the Cal Berkley vs. Stanford football game and was taking me and my two brothers to see it. I'm not a big football fan (in fact, the most I know about football is that the season takes place sometime in the fall, and not to go grocery shopping on Superbowl weekend), but I am a big fan of spending time with my mom and brothers, so off I went with a song in my heart (and a flask in my pocket.)Well, my football fan friends (all two of them) will be happy to know that not only did I enjoy the time with my family; I also enjoyed the game... A lot! I was surprised at how quickly I was drawn into the action. I found myself yelling, cheering, booing, swearing--even standing up and clapping when my (randomly chosen) team got a touchdown. It made me think about how sports hold a unique place in our culture... The teams and players are our modern day Greek heroes; those larger-than-life gladiators who make us feel as if each game is an open door of possibility; where the unexpected is anticipated and our own small acts of faith can help turn the tide from certain defeat to glorious victory.
It's heady stuff.
