Recent events around the globe have been a reality check for many. The devastating earthquake and ensuing tsunami that struck Japan, resulting in loss of life we won’t fully grasp for some time, makes the average person pause and take
Recent events around the globe have been a reality check for many.
The devastating earthquake and ensuing tsunami that struck Japan, resulting in loss of life we won’t fully grasp for some time, makes the average person pause and take stock of their own life.
It is a humbling reminder that, yes, life is short. Yes, life is fragile. Yes, we are far more mortal than we sometimes like to believe.
These realizations can cause people to look at aspects of their own existence and deem them unimportant, even petty. Little things we do for enjoyment may, all of a sudden, seem ridiculous.
Whereas four days ago, people were hoping their alma mater receives an at-large bid into the NCAA basketball tournament as if it were a life or death matter, such a mindset may now seem disgraceful.
Tragedies have struck the sports universe recently, as well.
Fennville High School basketball player Wes Leonard collapsed on the court after making a game-winning shot, then died just hours later. His teammates, with support from the tight-knit Michigan community, elected to continue playing their postseason schedule and Friday night won the district championship. Seconds after the win, Mitchell Leonard, Wes’ younger brother, was being lifted and hugged by his brother’s friends and was later handed the championship trophy.
Middle Tennessee State basketball player Tina Stewart, 21, was murdered on March 2, with her roommate later charged with the attack. Labeled “lovable, but stubborn” by those who knew her, Stewart was blossoming into a team leader.
While these instances are sobering, they should not be reasons to consider certain aspects of our own lives “unimportant.”
I strongly believe that these wake-up calls shouldn’t turn us away from things we enjoy, but should actually send us diving into them with even more energy than before.
Reminders that life can be ended quickly just make me get closer to the things that make me happy, whether that’s friends, family … or Selection Sunday.
Today is one of my absolute favorite days of the year. The NCAA basketball tournament is by far the best event in all of sports. I no longer consider that statement to be an opinion — it is undisputed fact.
Debate me on this and you shall be struck down with great force.
Seeing the CBS studio crew reveal the now 68-team field and beginning to dissect every single matchup is a yearly experience I can count on to both thoroughly frustrate and excite my brain.
Team X won nine of its last 10 games and has eight wins on the road this year. Can someone say sleeper?
Uch, Team Y was given a 3-seed? That’s the worst-coached squad I saw play all season. Upset city!
Is it slightly stupid to riddle my brain with even more of this information that doesn’t really make me a better person? I suppose, but it sure makes me happy.
That happiness doesn’t come at the expense of what’s really important. I know people across the Pacific are suffering and facing emotions I can’t even comprehend. I know that we here on Kaua‘i were fortunate to avoid major effects from the tsunami that reared its head with more force on some other Hawaiian islands.
The reason loss of life devastates us so, is that we are aware that life is pretty incredible. How fortunate we are to be alive includes continuing to enjoy things that make life so amazing to begin with, and that should give us all the perspective we need.
