I'm Back

You didn't even know I was gone did you. Actually, I haven't really been anywhere. Me and my
tush have pretty much taken up residence for the past 2 weeks on the couch as I've been living in Olympic Heaven. I love the Olympics. On any other saturday, flipping through channels, if I came across downhill skiing, curling, or even ice skating, I wouldn't give it a second glance. But put it on the tube with Bob Costas (who never seems to age) every 4 years, lead into the event with a great tear-jerking story, back it up with heart pumping music, and I'm hooked (except for the curling).

There's just something about Olympians that make me think:
a) These people are crazy
b) These people need to get a life
c) What is it about a little piece of gold plated medal that makes them devote and sacrifice their entire youth and early adulthood, not to mention a good chunk of their parents money?

I can't help but wonder what drives them. Is it the prospect of getting rich and famous? Having their picture appear on the cover of a Wheaties box? Could it really be just so they can say, 'I am the BEST at what I do in the whole wide world', at least for another 4 years.

I was watching the womens downhill skiing, and they interviewed Julia Mancuso after she lost an event. The interviewer thought maybe she had a off day because her ski-mate and close friend died while doing what he loved best, skiing. She told the reporters that his death really put things into perspective for her, "It's all about the skiing. That's the most important thing". Seriously? And to think all these years I've thought it was all about 'family' and the gospel, when really the secret of a happy life is 'skiing'.

I'm not sure how this post took a left turn for the worse. I sound like a cynic. Like an olympic pesimist, really i'm not. At least I didn't think so until I sounded it out, put it on paper, so to speak. I have issues. Am I jealous? Do I secretly envy people who are so focused on one thing, that their willing to practice at it for years on end and hours each day? Have I ever been that committed? Have I ever wanted anything that badly before?

Um, no.

Should I? I'm not a deep thinker, usually, but the olympics bring out the inner competitor in me, so I ask myself, ' Should I approach my life as if it were the Olympics'?

After all, isn't it the goal of all of us to 'get the gold', so to speak. (I'll be using alot of metaphors here, symbolism if you get my drift)

If there could only be 3 winners in these olympic games called life, would I be trying harder? Would I spend hours each week learning and practicing to be the best I could be at the temple training grounds? Would I be more willing to sacrifice my time, my money, give up any outside worldly distractions to accomplish my worthy goal? Would I be more committed...more focused...more determined if I could see the prize before me? Or would I just give up, knowing I'll never be good enough to make it to the highest medal platform?

I'm relieved life isn't really like the olympics. I'm glad I don't have to compete with others to get my gold, because competition turns people mean, and against each other. And besides, I would always fall short comparing myself to others. I'm glad we can help each other along the way, and encourage each other, so we can all be on the medal stand together, not by ourselves (how lonely would that be). I'm glad that we don't lose the gold by hundredths of a second, and when we fall short of our goals we won't have to wait for another 4 years to try again. I'm glad we have coaches who encourage us, who lead us, who helps us in our training and keeps us on the straight and narrow path that leads towards the gold.
I'm glad the one who judges us will be perfectly fair and just, and not nit-pick us if our foot (so to speak) doesn't completely rotate 3 1/2 times while spinning in the air and landing on thin blades and slippery ice. I'm glad the one who judges us is rooting for all of us to win the gold, and has the grace to overlook our flaws and mistakes. And I'm most grateful that we have a mediator who makes up the difference in our not-so-perfect performance and turns it into a perfect score. As long as we're trying to put in a gold medal performance, that's all they ask of us.

I hope to see you all on the 'gold medal platform'. I hope I'll be there too.

Until then, I guess I'll have to wait another 2 years till the summer Olympics come around.
(Too bad they don't have an event for synchronized sleeping, now that I could do!)