As published in The County Times (countytimes.somd.com)
By Ronald N. Guy Jr.
The idea was simple: sports offered a continuous
scroll of life lessons so vast and rich that it could, with adequate
storytelling, support a regular column. With
that, “A View from the Bleachers” was born.
In the years since, athletes, coaches and teams, from various levels of athletics,
have taken turns at the lectern. The
audience is us – the writer and the readers.
We consume initially as fans of competition and with a keen eye on the
ultimate judge and jury – the scoreboard.
But beyond that final accounting is a transcendent meaning. In the competition we see ourselves – as we
are or want to be - and glimpse the world - as it is, as it could be or as it
should be. The experience can inspire a
flood of conscience, hope, frustration or motivation – but always reflective
thought that leaves residual wisdom on the human existence.
My faith in this belief and in one of the great
teachers of my life – sports, has wavered recently. I never doubted that lessons were still being
taught. But was anyone – or enough of us
– still paying attention?
When I think back over the years, mine and those of
history, many lectures stand out. In
1984, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, at the height of their powers, were growing
basketball into a national behemoth. Meanwhile,
a Chicago Bulls rookie and one-time cut from his high school basketball team –
Michael Jordan – was preparing to inherit Bird and Magic’s crown and take the
game global. He eventually handed the
throne to a baby who was born in Akron, Ohio – LeBron James. For nearly 40 years, these four icons have
been dropping knowledge on unselfish play, grace in the public eye and an insatiable
competitive determination.
My mind then turns to football and the New England
region. The Patriots have taught much
over the years – hard work, dedication, team above individual and a laser focus
on doing your job within a broader initiative.
Ah, but there’s a dark side too. When
you don’t follow the rules – Deflategate and Spygate – it violates trust,
creates doubt about your accomplishments and permanently tarnishes your
reputation.
Likewise, PED use cost baseball an era of great
players. MLB was conspicuously
disengaged while players were seduced by the fame and fortune of juicy, drug-aided
performance. Now Barry Bonds, Mark
McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Roger Clemens roam outside of the Hall of Fame in
Cooperstown, branded forever with the scarlet “S” for steroids. And MLB, for its lack of oversight and
courage to guard the integrity of the sport, is left with a soiled record book.
Roger Maris and Hank Aaron deserved
better. We all deserved better.
With all due respect to The Great Courses, sports’
greatest course has been a near century-long seminar on race. Jackie Robinson, Bobby Mitchell, Serena and
Venus Williams, Arthur Ashe, Doug Williams and Colin Kaepernick all reminded us
that a ball doesn’t know or give a darn if it is hit or hurled by an African
American or a white athlete. Their
courage and accomplishments thumbed a nose at stereotypes, wagged a shameful
finger at racism and made us think deeper about the world and ourselves.
The lasting lessons of these and other sports stories
remain strong and relevant. Treat people
right. Be unselfish. Sacrifice.
Work hard. Do things the right
way. Be courageous and steadfast. Dream big.
Take responsibility for your actions.
Don’t point fingers or deflect blame.
Be a person of honesty, integrity and humility. Lead by example. Extend a hand to fellow competitors, not a
fist. Win and lose with grace. Respect the game, acknowledge it is bigger
than any individual and work to leave it a little better than you found
it.
This is what I have learned from sports. For a few years there, I wondered if the
lessons had grown antiquated and lost the crowd. Last week, America reaffirmed itself and the
education its sports have offered. So now,
we turn the page and life moves on. But
we’ll continue to file into a classroom for courses that never end. Meet me back here often to compare notes.
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