Very cool connections you've drawn here between religion and sports. As a lifelong sports-hater, I can only relate to being happy football season has started because Seahawks games are the perfect opportunity to visit usually crowded places like the pumpkin patch or Costco :)
I enjoyed listening to Minnesota Twins games on the radio as a boy with my mom, and I've enjoyed taking my daughters to San Diego Padres games. My dad waited years to get season tickets for the Minnesota Vikings, and I was so excited to actually go to games with him. I also grew up playing both baseball and football, so your perspective helps explain my feelings of loss regarding football somewhat.
I came to San Diego to go to grad school and instantly became a fan of the Padres and the Chargers, But when the Chargers left town for LA, that was the final straw for me. I was officially done with football, but that choice had been brewing for a long time. It's been hard - I have family members who coach football at the HS and college levels, and much of the conversation at family gatherings centers on football. I played at the college level for one season until multiple concussions forced me to find something safer. I still experience side effects from injuries sustained in football games and practices over 30 years later. Learning about what CTE did to heroes of mine like Junior Seau has been heartbreaking. The NFL seems to me to be an all-consuming organization with no shortage of black and brown bodies to destroy lured by the possibility of riches. I once heard Mark Cuban describe the NFL as "Not For Long." I pretty much have to keep these opinions inside at family events as you can imagine.
And yet, I still really enjoy sports. I like watching pro cycling on TV and the World Cup soccer matches. I love watching the Olympic events. And my youngest daughter is my Padres buddy. We are loving watching them progress through the playoffs together. Go Padres!
I really appreciated considering the spiritual parallels. Thanks again.
"Highly identified sports fans often report lower levels of loneliness and higher levels of self-esteem compared to non-fans or casual fans." I suspect this is true of the players themselves, as well.
Whenever you talk to a former athlete (or watch a documentary or something), the one thing they say they miss ... more than winning, successs, or championships is the locker room; that is, being with their teammates. At one level, sports is simply a good excuse for humans—especially the more masculine leaning humans who sometimes struggle in this area—to make friends and battle loneliness.
Totally agree. Same pattern with military service, with my friends who used to tour in bands together, with doing a year abroad, etc etc. We are so THOROUGHLY social, us human beings. I often find myself thinking that so much of all our cultural accretion is in large part just an excuse to get us to connect with other people, and that connection is the primary thing that makes many of us feel OK.
As a displaced NorCal boy now living in Texas, I've found that my Niners and Kings fandom (and sometimes Giants) has also helped me maintain a sense of place and home as I've lived all around the world.
It's also really fun raising little 49ers fans and instilling the Cowboys rivalry early on, but that gets a little murkier.
Michigan and Washington, tonight.
Very cool connections you've drawn here between religion and sports. As a lifelong sports-hater, I can only relate to being happy football season has started because Seahawks games are the perfect opportunity to visit usually crowded places like the pumpkin patch or Costco :)
Very interesting, Dan. thanks for sharing.
I enjoyed listening to Minnesota Twins games on the radio as a boy with my mom, and I've enjoyed taking my daughters to San Diego Padres games. My dad waited years to get season tickets for the Minnesota Vikings, and I was so excited to actually go to games with him. I also grew up playing both baseball and football, so your perspective helps explain my feelings of loss regarding football somewhat.
I came to San Diego to go to grad school and instantly became a fan of the Padres and the Chargers, But when the Chargers left town for LA, that was the final straw for me. I was officially done with football, but that choice had been brewing for a long time. It's been hard - I have family members who coach football at the HS and college levels, and much of the conversation at family gatherings centers on football. I played at the college level for one season until multiple concussions forced me to find something safer. I still experience side effects from injuries sustained in football games and practices over 30 years later. Learning about what CTE did to heroes of mine like Junior Seau has been heartbreaking. The NFL seems to me to be an all-consuming organization with no shortage of black and brown bodies to destroy lured by the possibility of riches. I once heard Mark Cuban describe the NFL as "Not For Long." I pretty much have to keep these opinions inside at family events as you can imagine.
And yet, I still really enjoy sports. I like watching pro cycling on TV and the World Cup soccer matches. I love watching the Olympic events. And my youngest daughter is my Padres buddy. We are loving watching them progress through the playoffs together. Go Padres!
I really appreciated considering the spiritual parallels. Thanks again.
Interesting ... thanks for this ...
"Highly identified sports fans often report lower levels of loneliness and higher levels of self-esteem compared to non-fans or casual fans." I suspect this is true of the players themselves, as well.
Whenever you talk to a former athlete (or watch a documentary or something), the one thing they say they miss ... more than winning, successs, or championships is the locker room; that is, being with their teammates. At one level, sports is simply a good excuse for humans—especially the more masculine leaning humans who sometimes struggle in this area—to make friends and battle loneliness.
Totally agree. Same pattern with military service, with my friends who used to tour in bands together, with doing a year abroad, etc etc. We are so THOROUGHLY social, us human beings. I often find myself thinking that so much of all our cultural accretion is in large part just an excuse to get us to connect with other people, and that connection is the primary thing that makes many of us feel OK.
As a displaced NorCal boy now living in Texas, I've found that my Niners and Kings fandom (and sometimes Giants) has also helped me maintain a sense of place and home as I've lived all around the world.
It's also really fun raising little 49ers fans and instilling the Cowboys rivalry early on, but that gets a little murkier.
so cool! very much relate to this