Football And Life

Quote for the Week

Football can dominate the Thanksgiving holidays to the extent that dinner is built around half time in a lot of homes. I know we usually have the Dallas game as soundtrack to the festivities. There are pro games and college games, and, here in Texas, high school playoff games that color our lives.

Then, there are movies about football and football players like The Blind Side starring Sandra Bullock which we saw yesterday. I've thought a lot about that movie, but I'll talk about it more in a bit. For now, here's the quote for the week which is inspired, of course, by football.

Joe Namath said: "Football Is an honest game. It's true to life. It's a game about sharing. Football is a team game. So is life."

What Broadway Joe said is what the movie is all about: life being a team game. The movie is great entertainment and touching because it's a true story. It also emphasizes the point that we all need a team in life to help us through the dark times. The amazing thing about the story of Michael Oher is that this amazing young man doesn't seem to have any bitterness in his heart for the events of his early life.
Says Oher: "I don't dwell on anything. I'm not going to feel sorry for myself because I didn't have a place to stay a lot of time.

Mr. Oher said: "It is what it is. We've got to go through some things in life. Take it and run with it." That doesn't mean he's forgotten all that he endured. It means he won't allow it to define himself as a person.

The other fascinating thing about the story of him and the Tuohy family is that timing played such an important role in what happened. If he hadn't gone to the school with the family friend who was trying to get his own son into the school. If he hadn't been forced onto the streets. If he hadn't been at that bus stop that snowy evening. If the Tuohy family hadn't been driving by. If he'd worn a coat rather than a tee shirt and shorts.

If, if, if. So many things had to align for Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy to see this kid who needed a coat. The Tuohy family stopped and brought him inside their warm car and out of the weather. How many saw him and didn't stop?

Today, Michael Oher has a bright and prosperous future. No one gave him that. He created it with help from a family that just couldn't stand to see a kid on the street without a coat on a cold, wet night. I'm always reminded of what some wise person said: "Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous."

Michael Oher knows that life requires team effort. He says he can't pass a homeless person on the street without digging into his pocket and offering money because: "I know how hard it is."

Be sure and see this movie. It'll make you cry, not because of cheap sentimentality, but because of the truth it hammers home about the struggles so many are faced with. You'll cry for what Michael endured and cry again for his triumph of the human spirit.

Takeaway Truth

We should all strive to be MVP on the team game of life. Who knows what differences we could make and what we could contribute if we just remember to protect and support the team?