First, I would like to note that I am a confessed homebody. I love being at home. I love days that I can spend in my pajamas with no real plans or obligations. I love taking a little time to be lazy.
That being said, I'm so ready to get out of this house! Today was the second day I missed work due to the icy conditions, and it's possible I won't be able to make it in until later in the day tomorrow. I've had time to gather my thoughts, finish the puzzle Daddy and I started at Christmas, write, read, and keep up with my exercise (indoors only). I've also had way too much time to watch TV, which in the middle of the day mostly consists of the news, talk shows, and soap operas. Mostly, I've chosen the news, and after two days, I can almost report the news stories by heart.
One of the most reported topics of late is - in case you are unaware and completely out of touch - Auburn won the National Championship. For the most part, I have refrained from commenting on this. I'm happy for the fans and the state of Alabama, but Auburn's just not my deal. I think even Auburn fans can appreciate that. Honestly, I am getting tired of hearing about it all, but I wouldn't take that away from the university or the fans...I know they got tired of hearing about Alabama last year, too. And I'm not really into issuing passive aggressive ramblings and trash talk that sometimes gets a little too emotional and personal - and which I've regrettably read coming from fans of all sorts of teams...mostly SEC. So aside from offering a congratulations, there's really not that much more for me to say about it...except, I did read an interesting article today stating that Auburn's National Championship Trophy will be displayed in the local Wal-Mart. I only note this because last year I seem to remember a number of Auburn fans making fun of Alabama for the same exact thing. Like I said, it was an interesting article.
Even as a passionate (and all too often obsessive) Alabama fan, I've sometimes questioned our devotion to paying large amounts of money to essentially watch guys run back and forth on a field, pounding one another. When you sit around thinking about it for too long, it starts to sound downright absurd...especially when you think about the millions of dollars some guys make playing football - and other sports - as their "job." To hear players talk about the game or the season, you'd think they had just been to war. Sometimes, I think the battle imagery and the significance we place on the "game" is too much. And maybe sometimes it is. But as I watched the other major news stories of the past couple of days - the shooting in Tucson - the flooding in Australia - I started to consider the true importance of celebrations like the National Championship Game. Even in the face of great tragedy, celebrations bring us a moment of respite...they give us permission to smile, to laugh, to be joyous. Celebrations, be they a game or a birthday or a beautiful day, remind us of the reasons that we persevere through the struggles that we do.
In a world where our daily lives are filled with battles - some great, some small - it's cathartic to be able to rally together with fellow fans behind a team that we love. We cheer their triumphs, and we bemoan their failures. We love a good comeback, and we appreciate a success story that comes from the most unexpected place. We trash talk opponents because somehow our team is more talented, more moral, more worthy, more deserving than our foes. Maybe it's true, maybe it isn't...but it gives us something to get behind. Isn't that reflective of our own lives? Doesn't it reflect the success that we desire for ourselves. Doesn't it give us an outlet for our competitive spirit? Even the Bible refers to life like a race to be won or lost. It's in us to strive to win, to finish the race.
Maybe I'm thinking too much into it. I have been stuck in the house for a while now. I guess that sometimes we - myself included - get a little too involved with our "teams." We place a little too much importance on winning and losing, and in our elation or our defeat, we go a little too far. However, in time, the excitement of winning fades and the sting of loss dissolves. Life equalizes and returns to normal. And in those moments, as we return to our own daily battles, our own triumphs and tragedies, we move forward with the assurance that just around the corner...is NEXT SEASON!
CONGRATULATIONS, AUBURN! AND, AS ALWAYS, ROLL TIDE!
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
1/1/11 - Out With the Old, In With the...Well, You Know
So long, 2010. Can't say I'm too sad to see you to see you go. Don't get me wrong, you've brought me a lot of blessings. I've finally achieved stable, gainful employment. I've finished another script with my writing partner. I've watched my Youth Group grow and learn spiritually. I've grown and learned spiritually. I've enjoyed a full year getting reacquainted with my family after having lived apart from them for over 7 years (3 1/2 of which were all the way on the other side of the country). I've celebrated my grandmother's 89th birthday. I've certainly had a lot of experiences for which I am eternally thankful.
But underneath the facade, 2010, you've been a year of stress. A year of ups and downs...of almosts and disappointments. You've been a year during which I've struggled and wrestled with myself more than any other I can remember. I feel like there is some great thing - some awesome adventure - that is waiting just beyond my fingertips. All through 2010 I've reached for it but haven't quite grasped it. That feeling of falling short is why I am glad to see 2010 in my rearview.
And why I have an enormous amount of faith in 2011.
Yes, I know we always make a lot of the infamous New Year's Resolutions - most of which are broken before January 2nd. But there's something about that fresh start of a new year. It's a new chance to evaluate ourselves. To see where we've been and anticipate where we're going. A new year holds the hope that we will finally get it together and achieve the dreams we hold dear. It holds the promise of opportunity...but it's up to us to cling to the determination to follow through.
This is the first year in quite a while that I've actually written down resolutions. I've made a point to keep them on my desk so that I can take them out from time to time to remind myself of the vigor in which I rolled into 2011. Will I achieve all of them? Honestly, probably not. But I believe having a tangible reminder of what I expect of myself throughout this next year will at least keep me progressing towards my goals (if not outright achieving them) and prevent me from spinning my wheels as I did in 2010.
If there's one thing that I've realized with the coming of this new year, it's that time flies faster and faster with each year that goes by. If you're not careful, you'll blink and ten years will pass, and you'll still be standing in the same place with a dazed and confused look on your face. That's how I've felt about my last 365 days, and I don't want to have a similar feeling with the ringing in of 2012.
So here's to the next trip around the sun. Here's to the adventure that's just around the corner. Here's to the next step towards my dreams. Here's to the death of anxious pessimism and to the rise of hope. Is it easier said than done. Of course it is. But isn't the first step admitting the problem?
Happy 2011, Everyone!
But underneath the facade, 2010, you've been a year of stress. A year of ups and downs...of almosts and disappointments. You've been a year during which I've struggled and wrestled with myself more than any other I can remember. I feel like there is some great thing - some awesome adventure - that is waiting just beyond my fingertips. All through 2010 I've reached for it but haven't quite grasped it. That feeling of falling short is why I am glad to see 2010 in my rearview.
And why I have an enormous amount of faith in 2011.
Yes, I know we always make a lot of the infamous New Year's Resolutions - most of which are broken before January 2nd. But there's something about that fresh start of a new year. It's a new chance to evaluate ourselves. To see where we've been and anticipate where we're going. A new year holds the hope that we will finally get it together and achieve the dreams we hold dear. It holds the promise of opportunity...but it's up to us to cling to the determination to follow through.
This is the first year in quite a while that I've actually written down resolutions. I've made a point to keep them on my desk so that I can take them out from time to time to remind myself of the vigor in which I rolled into 2011. Will I achieve all of them? Honestly, probably not. But I believe having a tangible reminder of what I expect of myself throughout this next year will at least keep me progressing towards my goals (if not outright achieving them) and prevent me from spinning my wheels as I did in 2010.
If there's one thing that I've realized with the coming of this new year, it's that time flies faster and faster with each year that goes by. If you're not careful, you'll blink and ten years will pass, and you'll still be standing in the same place with a dazed and confused look on your face. That's how I've felt about my last 365 days, and I don't want to have a similar feeling with the ringing in of 2012.
So here's to the next trip around the sun. Here's to the adventure that's just around the corner. Here's to the next step towards my dreams. Here's to the death of anxious pessimism and to the rise of hope. Is it easier said than done. Of course it is. But isn't the first step admitting the problem?
Happy 2011, Everyone!
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