“For when the One Great Scorer comes
To mark against your name,
He writes - not that you won or lost -
But how you played the Game.
"Alumnus Football”
--Grantland Rice
Recently I play a tennis match at the Washington State Tournament at the Seattle Tennis Club. Gorgeous day. Amazing setting. My lovely wife Hattie and great friend Denny were watching. I competed well in a 2 and 1/2 hour match against the 2nd seeds in the tournament. I played with Joe Cannon, a friend of over 40 years, in an experience which drew us closer and cemented our relationship.
But we lost. So it sucked.
Two weeks later I played in another tournament with much more challenging conditions. My partner Joe had injured a stomach muscle and had to serve underhanded during our matches. Some of our opponents were nice, one in particular was downright surly. At times the whole experience felt like a trial by fire, and not just because we played in the stifling heat of an indoor tournament in August.
But we made it to the finals of a national tournament. So it was really cool.
Sports is about winning and losing, isn’t it? That’s why we like it so much. In our lives filled with nuances and quandaries and indecision and uncertainties, we can gravitate to the dualistic thinking of sports. We hear about a game or match and we ask: Who won? Cut and dry and simple.
Unlike the rest of life.
Which is why I tend to poo poo my lifelong addiction to sports, both as a participant and a fan. Isn’t it just a diversion, an escape from the more important things in life? The stress on winning and losing is polarized thinking; truth is usually about both sides having merit and infinitely more.
I must be a loser to be so caught up with winning.
But if truth is about both sides having merit, isn’t there something to say about wanting to win? There is in the Bible. 1st Corinthians 9:24 says: “Do you know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.”
Hmmm.
Maybe it’s just important to not run from the paradox. Winning as doing your best and competing against yourself and using your gifts is good. So is losing, as in losing your life to gain it, losing yourself in love, losing your self made protective props. And the balance can be found with that Loser/Winner Jesus, the itinerant preacher was born in a stable and died on a cross but who changed the world like no other person in history. He’s my Great Scorer, and through Him I hope to play with perspective.
To mark against your name,
He writes - not that you won or lost -
But how you played the Game.
"Alumnus Football”
--Grantland Rice
Recently I play a tennis match at the Washington State Tournament at the Seattle Tennis Club. Gorgeous day. Amazing setting. My lovely wife Hattie and great friend Denny were watching. I competed well in a 2 and 1/2 hour match against the 2nd seeds in the tournament. I played with Joe Cannon, a friend of over 40 years, in an experience which drew us closer and cemented our relationship.
But we lost. So it sucked.
Two weeks later I played in another tournament with much more challenging conditions. My partner Joe had injured a stomach muscle and had to serve underhanded during our matches. Some of our opponents were nice, one in particular was downright surly. At times the whole experience felt like a trial by fire, and not just because we played in the stifling heat of an indoor tournament in August.
But we made it to the finals of a national tournament. So it was really cool.
Sports is about winning and losing, isn’t it? That’s why we like it so much. In our lives filled with nuances and quandaries and indecision and uncertainties, we can gravitate to the dualistic thinking of sports. We hear about a game or match and we ask: Who won? Cut and dry and simple.
Unlike the rest of life.
Which is why I tend to poo poo my lifelong addiction to sports, both as a participant and a fan. Isn’t it just a diversion, an escape from the more important things in life? The stress on winning and losing is polarized thinking; truth is usually about both sides having merit and infinitely more.
I must be a loser to be so caught up with winning.
But if truth is about both sides having merit, isn’t there something to say about wanting to win? There is in the Bible. 1st Corinthians 9:24 says: “Do you know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.”
Hmmm.
Maybe it’s just important to not run from the paradox. Winning as doing your best and competing against yourself and using your gifts is good. So is losing, as in losing your life to gain it, losing yourself in love, losing your self made protective props. And the balance can be found with that Loser/Winner Jesus, the itinerant preacher was born in a stable and died on a cross but who changed the world like no other person in history. He’s my Great Scorer, and through Him I hope to play with perspective.
RSS Feed