Sports have been around a long time. Study the annals of history and you will find different athletic competitions going back essentially as far as we can search. Whether it was racing, or boxing, or even simply killing each other in a giant stadium filled with spectators, mankind has loved to compete and to watch competitive feats of physical conquest. Why? Why are sports so pervasively "human"? Though not an exhaustive list, here are a few reasons:
1) We love to be distracted. The harshness of life goes back about as far as our love of sports, and it's no coincidence. Athletics are a useful diversion. Some people would say that this is a bad thing, but I think there is a place for it, though we must be moderate in this, as with all things.
2) We love to drink alcohol. Booze=good. Booze+sports=great. Booze+sports+fried food=fantastic.
3) We love to see adversity overcome by triumph. There's just something about a fourth-quarter comeback, amiright?! Something innate in us loves to see our fellow human beings overcoming the odds, their own inferiority, and, especially, the refs!
4) We love to watch other people do things we cannot do, while simultaneously thinking that we actually might be able to do them, too. We love to live vicariously through amazing athletes as we watch the potential of the human form continue to be matched and exceeded over and over again. This is why we love to see records broken! More than that, however, we watch sports because we like to play sports, but we can't really play them anymore. As we watch our favorite team, we are reminded of when we used to throw around the ol' pigskin. Uncle Rico, anyone?
5) We love community. We humans were not made to be solitary creatures. We were created to exist and thrive in community. Just as we gather in towns, cities, and nations, so we gather together around the TV or in a stadium to watch sports. Sports actually demonstrates this in two ways. Not only do we gather to watch sports, but we find that camaraderie as we watch many moving parts working together for a united purpose. There's something sweet about watching a well-crafted football play go for a touchdown. There's something beautiful about the basketball being passed from player to player until it finds its way into the basket. Sports is one more thing that reveals the inherent, yet broken, harmony of Creation.
So whether you're sitting in the stands, turning on the tube, or roasting rivals online, remember that your love of sports is natural. In fact, it's very human.
1) We love to be distracted. The harshness of life goes back about as far as our love of sports, and it's no coincidence. Athletics are a useful diversion. Some people would say that this is a bad thing, but I think there is a place for it, though we must be moderate in this, as with all things.
2) We love to drink alcohol. Booze=good. Booze+sports=great. Booze+sports+fried food=fantastic.
3) We love to see adversity overcome by triumph. There's just something about a fourth-quarter comeback, amiright?! Something innate in us loves to see our fellow human beings overcoming the odds, their own inferiority, and, especially, the refs!
4) We love to watch other people do things we cannot do, while simultaneously thinking that we actually might be able to do them, too. We love to live vicariously through amazing athletes as we watch the potential of the human form continue to be matched and exceeded over and over again. This is why we love to see records broken! More than that, however, we watch sports because we like to play sports, but we can't really play them anymore. As we watch our favorite team, we are reminded of when we used to throw around the ol' pigskin. Uncle Rico, anyone?
5) We love community. We humans were not made to be solitary creatures. We were created to exist and thrive in community. Just as we gather in towns, cities, and nations, so we gather together around the TV or in a stadium to watch sports. Sports actually demonstrates this in two ways. Not only do we gather to watch sports, but we find that camaraderie as we watch many moving parts working together for a united purpose. There's something sweet about watching a well-crafted football play go for a touchdown. There's something beautiful about the basketball being passed from player to player until it finds its way into the basket. Sports is one more thing that reveals the inherent, yet broken, harmony of Creation.
So whether you're sitting in the stands, turning on the tube, or roasting rivals online, remember that your love of sports is natural. In fact, it's very human.
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