If you’ve seen any ESPN over the past couple weeks, you probably saw that the UConn women’s basketball team saw its streak of 90 straight victories come to an end. What you maybe missed was the radio interview that Coach Geno Auriemma did about a year ago when he said that if they continued to go unbeaten into 2011 that he would walk away because there would be no point to continuing on without any competition. I don’t think he was being serious – he wasn’t going to quit the year before coaching in the 2012 Olympics. But even if joking, Coach Auriemma still made a point. Without a challenge to overcome, or a hill of some sort to climb, life is dull.
How often do I just want my life to be easy? How often do the athletes we coach want things to be easy? It’s not too tough to understand that when life is easy, we are not challenged and pushed. We don’t get better. Even more than that, when life is easy, it’s probably nice for a while, but then it gets boring. Here’s an example from my life this week: you might think this is dumb, but I don’t care. My sons got a basketball hoop for Christmas, and before it could be used, it needed to be put together. For many, that’s no big deal, you’re probably pretty handy around the house. But for me, when I opened that box and saw all those pieces and directions, it made me want to burst into tears. I just don’t do well with putting stuff together or building, and trying to follow the assembly instructions that come with things makes me ill. I don’t know how people make sense of those things.
Anyway, I decided I was going to put this thing together myself. I took my time, followed the instructions, even improvised when needed. When I felt like quitting I thought about how much fun my boys would have shooting hoops in the yard. Eventually, it was finished. It probably took me an hour or so more than it would have taken someone who’s got talent; someone like my Dad or my wife, but I did it. And honestly, when it was over I was glad it had been at least a little challenging. I was glad to have, in some small way, overcome an obstacle or two.
Let’s be clear, the challenge of building a basketball goal or even coaching a team to 90 straight wins doesn’t compare with the real-life challenges that many people face each day. Some types of challenges are much easier to be grateful for than others. But I bet a part of Geno Auriemma is glad that his team has some competition again. And he quite possibly has a newfound respect for his colleagues. If sports (and life) are about competing, then let’s thank God for those people and circumstances that force us to strive to be the best we can be. I’ll be thinking about that every time I shoot hoops with my kids.
80’s Lyric