When It Is More Than “Just A Game”

“Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge, which is power; religion gives man wisdom, which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals.” – MLK

“It is much more than just a game”.  Something I have had said over 500 times since March.  It is a simple concept, but because fear has taken over so many lives, it has become harder and harder for many to understand.

“Sports are important for both the physical and emotional well-being of children. For many it’s the thing that keeps them going, keeps them out of trouble and keeps them motivated in school. It really is more than a game, for some, it is a chance to move on from where they come from and start a new chapter to their lives. Sports for some is a way to open the door to new opportunities that would not otherwise be available.”

That above quote is just one of many sent my way over the last few weeks.  It is more than a game.  For some, it is their only way out.  For coaches, it is their passion, the extra income and something they have worked their whole lives for.

The COVID 19 Pandemic hasn’t just hurt the players and coaches on the field, but also the referees; umpires, scorekeepers, officials, cheerleaders, parents, sportswriters, announcers, and the list goes on and on.  It’s much more than just a game, it’s a way of life and a passion for many.

Right now, every time I turn on social media, I see one negative gloom and doom comment after another, some from our local sports reporters, and I just have to scratch my head.  Hope is free, why choose to have gloom and doom?  What possible good does that do?

With today being the one-year anniversary of the MLB All Star Game in Cleveland, I feel compelled to tell this story one more time as to why sports are important, and how they can save a life from going down dark roads such as drugs and possible other terrible choices.

My entire life, sports have been that one thing that could always cheer me up, it could fix a broken heart. Since March 11, we have felt such a strong void and it has left people scrambling for answers, and others living in fear. It got me thinking that if I could share some experiences of my own, it may help others realize that they are not alone.

In April of 2017 my mom was put into a medical induced coma to help her body fight a disease called “ARDS”. It ate away at her body and almost killed her. After dying for 17 minutes, she came back to life. It was the scariest and craziest thing I have ever witnessed in my life.

The next day, it happened all over again as she was pulled from life support and given a death sentence. Instead, she popped out of it and was up and walking around like nothing happened 7 days later. This incredible story will be the subject of a book I’m currently working on as we speak.

It was dark, it was hard to live with and it is the kind of thing that can ruin a person mentally if you let it. However, before any sadness or even jubilation could really set in, I had sports to turn my mind onto something positive. Not only did I have sports, but my dream gig waiting for me as a Color Man on the announce team for AFC Cleveland Soccer of the NPSL.

It was that gig, that dream coming true that got me through any PTSD that may have existed after what happened with my mom. It was sports that gave me something to look forward to, love and feel good again. It was sports that brought back the normal and fixed a broken heart in many ways.

On the afternoon of July 9, 2019, I visited my Grandparents. Something just told me that day was special, it was different, and it was perfect that I was there to see them. I had a long talk with my Grandma that day.

It was different because normally I would spend an entire grandparent visit talking sports with my Grandpa. This time it was Grandma taking my full attention, and rightfully so!

She encouraged me to go to the MLB All Star Game that night in Cleveland. Reminding me it was a once in a lifetime chance and that I should take the night off from work, and just sit, relax and enjoy the game. Something I almost never get to do anymore.

So, I did just that, I went and loved it! But during the National Anthem something crazy happened, I started crying. Not bawling or anything to make a scene, but my eyes welted up with tears and I couldn’t figure out why.

I just had this sense of pain in my gut and I couldn’t shake it. A sense of doom on the way and that this night would be my last happy one for a while. It was….

Two days later I found out that my dear friend Cathy Wade was dying of cancer and headed to hospice. It was a painful blow and a call I always dreaded getting. She had beaten cancer twice, but it showed up a third time and took her out. She would pass shortly after.

Two weeks after losing Cathy, we lost my Grandma suddenly and without warning. She was the sweetest person I have ever known, an an angel on Earth.

July 2019 was the hardest month of my entire life. But that All Star Game, that night of peace of joy….. I clung to the memory of it. At every Wake, every Funeral, every burial, I clung to that memory.

I know it sounds weird, I know it sounds silly or strange, but sports fixed it. It didn’t bring the people back, but it fixed it. Every time I wanted to break down thinking about Cathy or my Grandma, I remembered that All Star Game, or looked ahead to High School Football season and I felt better.

Now, here we are again, the darkest period in American history as an invisible disease is stopping the sports world in it’s tracks. I say “invisible” not to intend that it isn’t deadly, but just like cancer we never see it coming until the person is suffering from it. It sneaks up and does horrendous damage.

Sports have been cancelled worldwide, and without the sure “fix all” that is athletics, where do we turn? The answer for me at least is simple, family and prayer. I have been with my two young daughters pretty much nonstop the last 17 weeks. It has been amazing. As badly as my heart hurts without sports, that is the one thing keeping me going.

Because it is more than just a game, it is a way of life, and if thousands can gather for political reasons, then a couple hundred can gather to watch their children play.  The days are fleeting, and the moments disappearing, don’t rob a generation.  This isn’t politics, this isn’t science vs religion, this is something we owe our next generation.  What do you want to teach them?

It is more than Prom, it is more than Graduation, it is more than award ceremonies, it is more than a game.  Do the right thing.

As for the fans that don’t want to show up and support the kids, then stay home.  No one is forcing you to go.  If you want to go and wear a mask, please do.  Feel comfortable and enjoy the moment.

No one is forcing you to do anything you don’t want to do.  But just remember, for many, it is more than just a game….