Which was the bigger story this Olympics, Michael Phelps winning eight gold medals, Usain Bolt breaking Michael Johnson’s “fastest man alive” record, the United States regaining its crown as the best basketball team in the world or the Chinese government supposedly forging records to allow underage girls to compete in gymnastics?
It is a tough choice. There were so many great moments from this year’s Olympic Games and I am glad I tuned in to check out so many wonderful achievements from the world’s top athletes.
It got me to thinking about some of the great moments from past Olympics that I have had the pleasure of viewing. Here are the highlights from my lifetime that I can remember experiencing with the rest of America.
As a boy I wasn’t that into sports of any kind, however, once professional athletes were allowed to compete at the Olympics and the 1992 Dream Team competed in Barcelona, I was interested. The Dream Team was made up of an illustrious collection of talent that included several men who have been labeled the greatest to play the game. This included Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Scottie Pippen, Clyde Drexler, Karl Malone, John Stockton, Chris Mullin and Charles Barkley. The only non-professional athlete on the team was Christian Laettner of Duke University.
At the tender age of 12 I was enthralled by the all-star caliber this team had to offer. The dominance this team showed in Barcelona will never be forgotten and it is that spirit and supremacy this year’s Redeem Team was hoping to renew, which in my humble opinion it did.
My single favorite moment from any Olympic Games – even including the ones before I was born – is gymnast Kerri Strug winning the U.S. a gold medal in team competition. Strug was a member of the “Magnificent Seven” at the 1996 games in Atlanta.
You might have seen this epic moment highlighted in a commercial narrated by Morgan Freeman during this year’s competition.
Strug – being the last to vault for the United States – under-rotated the landing on her first attempt and injured her ankle. She needed a high score to cover for the Russian team’s floor exercise score, which was projected to be a good one. Strug’s first score of 9.162 points would have been good enough to secure the gold but the U.S. team couldn’t be sure of that and sent her out for another vault.
Strug had 30 seconds to limp back to the end of the runway for her second attempt. I still get chills thinking about that little girl (who was three years older than me at the time) flinging through the air with only one working ankle knowing the landing is going to be one of the most painful feelings she has ever endured. Having that expectation run through her mind as she spins and flips in the air is what makes her landing even more extraordinary.
Strug landed briefly on both feet, almost instantly raising her hurt foot from the mat. She raised her arms, saluted the judges, hopped around and raised her arms again. She had done what she need and scored a 9.712, ending all doubts about where we would finish in the medal standings.
The scandalous story of Nancy Kerrigan being clubbed in the knee prior to the 1994 U.S. National Championships in Detroit was all I remember from the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. Viewers including my mother were completely engaged in the ice skating competition to see how the United States’ team would fare.
At 14 years of age I didn’t know who the women were and I hated watching ice skating, but I was captivated by the idea that a person would go so far as to attack a rival for a chance to participate in the Olympics. I truly didn’t comprehend how important it was to these athletes to have their shot at competing for their country.
The bombing at the Centennial Olympic Park that killed two and injured 111 others marred the Atlanta Games in 1996. I couldn’t believe a bombing had occurred on American soil because in my sheltered brain that sort of thing was only supposed to take place in war-torn areas like the Middle East and countries split into northern and southern lands such as Korea and Vietnam.
One of my last favorite moments is a little bittersweet because I think I came up with this idea before the Olympic Committee did. What I am talking about is the Olympic Flame Lighting during the opening ceremony for the 1992 Games in Barcelona. Paralympic archer Antonio Rebollo fired a burning arrow toward the cauldron sending the flames high into the air.
When I was about 7 years old I had the idea that it would be neat to send an arrow above the crowd into the cauldron. Of course in my version of events I was the archer and I spent many days in my backyard attempting to build a bow in order to begin practicing the amazing deed I would bestow upon the world later in life. Somebody must have been spying on me and took my idea for the 1992 Olympics.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Stressful Days Can Pay Off Big
It was a hectic time last week between having a blowout on my recently repaired car, getting engaged to my longtime girlfriend, hosting my daughter’s first birthday party and spending a night out with my family for my birthday. Getting engaged and celebrating Emery’s birthday were the two most exciting moments from last week, but preparing for each had me wanting to rip my hair out at the root.
The engagement came two Thursday nights ago. The event included candles, flowers, me down on one knee holding the ring and a web of lies to assure my fiancée Joanna would be out of the apartment so I could set the mood. Joanna was supposed to be spending the evening with her mother, but on Wednesday she threw the first – and certainly not the last – kink in my plan by telling me she was not leaving her apartment on Thursday.
Adding to my stress of purchasing the votive candles and candleholders, flowers and a vase to keep them alive and finding a box to hold the ring (we are using my grandmother’s engagement ring and it didn’t come with a box) I now had to come up with a plan to get her out of the apartment for 15 minutes while I moved things around, lit candles and made sure she walked in on the biggest surprise of her life. I eventually decided on the old “my car broke down and can you come and get me” routine. It worked and her exit gave me the time I needed.
The other snag in the night was after I called her to tell her my car was okay and I would meet her at the apartment. She told me she was hungry and wanted to go get something to eat. Of course I said that was fine because if I didn’t she would become wise to my game. The reason I didn’t want her to go get food though was because then I would have no clue as to when she would be back at the apartment and I didn’t want to light the candles too early.
It all worked out though when she called back two minutes later and said the restaurant she tried calling didn’t answer. I told her to meet me at the apartment and we would go get food together. She complied, walked in on the romantic setting and told me she wouldn’t marry me, which was her way of paying me back for lying to her about the broken-down car. Of course she immediately retracted her answer and all was well in our newly engaged world.
The next day I left work early to go set up for Emery’s birthday party at my mom’s house. Working in 100-degree weather to set up tables, chairs, baby pools, water slides and other party assortments was enough to make me say I will never host another birthday party again. Little Emery was about to experience her first and last birthday party ever with her dad.
Lucky for her, however, once the festivities began and I saw how excited she was to play in the water, destroy the cake and take part in all the other celebratory activities, I had a change of heart and decided all the sweating and hard labor was worth it.
Between the stress of getting Joanna’s proposal just right and the hard work of making Emery’s first birthday a special day I wanted to give up on anything requiring more than five minutes of prep time, but the payoff for both occasions made all the mental and physical strain worth it.
The engagement came two Thursday nights ago. The event included candles, flowers, me down on one knee holding the ring and a web of lies to assure my fiancée Joanna would be out of the apartment so I could set the mood. Joanna was supposed to be spending the evening with her mother, but on Wednesday she threw the first – and certainly not the last – kink in my plan by telling me she was not leaving her apartment on Thursday.
Adding to my stress of purchasing the votive candles and candleholders, flowers and a vase to keep them alive and finding a box to hold the ring (we are using my grandmother’s engagement ring and it didn’t come with a box) I now had to come up with a plan to get her out of the apartment for 15 minutes while I moved things around, lit candles and made sure she walked in on the biggest surprise of her life. I eventually decided on the old “my car broke down and can you come and get me” routine. It worked and her exit gave me the time I needed.
The other snag in the night was after I called her to tell her my car was okay and I would meet her at the apartment. She told me she was hungry and wanted to go get something to eat. Of course I said that was fine because if I didn’t she would become wise to my game. The reason I didn’t want her to go get food though was because then I would have no clue as to when she would be back at the apartment and I didn’t want to light the candles too early.
It all worked out though when she called back two minutes later and said the restaurant she tried calling didn’t answer. I told her to meet me at the apartment and we would go get food together. She complied, walked in on the romantic setting and told me she wouldn’t marry me, which was her way of paying me back for lying to her about the broken-down car. Of course she immediately retracted her answer and all was well in our newly engaged world.
The next day I left work early to go set up for Emery’s birthday party at my mom’s house. Working in 100-degree weather to set up tables, chairs, baby pools, water slides and other party assortments was enough to make me say I will never host another birthday party again. Little Emery was about to experience her first and last birthday party ever with her dad.
Lucky for her, however, once the festivities began and I saw how excited she was to play in the water, destroy the cake and take part in all the other celebratory activities, I had a change of heart and decided all the sweating and hard labor was worth it.
Between the stress of getting Joanna’s proposal just right and the hard work of making Emery’s first birthday a special day I wanted to give up on anything requiring more than five minutes of prep time, but the payoff for both occasions made all the mental and physical strain worth it.
Monday, August 11, 2008
If You’re Not Careful, All You’ll Be Left With Are Fleeting Memories
As every day passes by I realize more and more how much of an old man I am. All I lack really is using terms like “whippersnapper” and eating dinner at 4:45 in the afternoon.
The reason I mention this is because of the advice I am about to bestow on all you readers. Most of you aren’t going to be blown away by this. In fact, everybody pretty much over the age of about 24 already knows this, but I’m going to throw it out there to remind us all of this fact. Here it is: “Embrace the now.”
You might comprehend this life lesson as “seize the day” or maybe you like the quote, “Live like there is no tomorrow.” Whatever your translation, enjoy the precious moments in your life right now because they will pass in the blink of an eye and all you will have left are fleeting memories and even those won’t last forever.
This topic is on my mind today because my daughter’s birthday is tomorrow. She turns a year old and I will spend most of Friday thinking about what has to be done to get the party ready, setting up the water slides, decorating the house and then fretting over what should come first, the cake or the presents. I’m leaning toward presents first so that she isn’t covered in icing when the clothes are pulled out of the boxes and bags. Because I will be distracted by the insignificant details of my child’s birthday parties I am most likely going to miss out on the entire purpose of the day, celebrating the birth of my beautiful baby girl.
A year has passed and it seems like it was only a few weeks ago when I got the phone call to get up to the hospital. So many things have happened since then, so many “first” milestones, and I didn’t fully appreciate each small moment for what it was worth.
I remember her first solid food being avocado (I know, I have a weird kid) but I don’t fully remember the instance when she ate it. With every new trick (the word her mother and I use to signify landmark moments of development such as waving, talking, laughing) Emery learned in the past year I should have been basking in the moment, taking in every thought, every sight, every smell even, to appreciate and remember the occasion.
Pictures and video recordings help to preserve our memories, but what a beating it is to carry around the camera everywhere you go to pick up each individual moment from a child’s life. And in all honesty, how many people make a point to go back and look at photo albums or tapes of graduation? It is great to have photo albums around when your kids ask about grandma or what their third birthday party was like and we always appreciate the person who took the time out to document these moments of a person’s life, but few want to be that person.
So I will say it again, cherish each precious moment you have. Not to sound like a downer, but it is only going to get worse. Being a kid was great because you had scheduled naps and when you were awake all you did was play. College is said to be the best time of our lives, and for me it wasn’t far from the truth. Getting married and starting a family is a tough thing to wrap your head around, but it is always such an exciting and new time. Grandchildren are a blessing that almost no human being can avoid spoiling.
These are all wonderful moments in a person’s life and if you don’t watch out it will pass you by in the blink of an eye, just like the last year of my daughter’s life has passed by me and I feel like I didn’t fully appreciate it.
The reason I mention this is because of the advice I am about to bestow on all you readers. Most of you aren’t going to be blown away by this. In fact, everybody pretty much over the age of about 24 already knows this, but I’m going to throw it out there to remind us all of this fact. Here it is: “Embrace the now.”
You might comprehend this life lesson as “seize the day” or maybe you like the quote, “Live like there is no tomorrow.” Whatever your translation, enjoy the precious moments in your life right now because they will pass in the blink of an eye and all you will have left are fleeting memories and even those won’t last forever.
This topic is on my mind today because my daughter’s birthday is tomorrow. She turns a year old and I will spend most of Friday thinking about what has to be done to get the party ready, setting up the water slides, decorating the house and then fretting over what should come first, the cake or the presents. I’m leaning toward presents first so that she isn’t covered in icing when the clothes are pulled out of the boxes and bags. Because I will be distracted by the insignificant details of my child’s birthday parties I am most likely going to miss out on the entire purpose of the day, celebrating the birth of my beautiful baby girl.
A year has passed and it seems like it was only a few weeks ago when I got the phone call to get up to the hospital. So many things have happened since then, so many “first” milestones, and I didn’t fully appreciate each small moment for what it was worth.
I remember her first solid food being avocado (I know, I have a weird kid) but I don’t fully remember the instance when she ate it. With every new trick (the word her mother and I use to signify landmark moments of development such as waving, talking, laughing) Emery learned in the past year I should have been basking in the moment, taking in every thought, every sight, every smell even, to appreciate and remember the occasion.
Pictures and video recordings help to preserve our memories, but what a beating it is to carry around the camera everywhere you go to pick up each individual moment from a child’s life. And in all honesty, how many people make a point to go back and look at photo albums or tapes of graduation? It is great to have photo albums around when your kids ask about grandma or what their third birthday party was like and we always appreciate the person who took the time out to document these moments of a person’s life, but few want to be that person.
So I will say it again, cherish each precious moment you have. Not to sound like a downer, but it is only going to get worse. Being a kid was great because you had scheduled naps and when you were awake all you did was play. College is said to be the best time of our lives, and for me it wasn’t far from the truth. Getting married and starting a family is a tough thing to wrap your head around, but it is always such an exciting and new time. Grandchildren are a blessing that almost no human being can avoid spoiling.
These are all wonderful moments in a person’s life and if you don’t watch out it will pass you by in the blink of an eye, just like the last year of my daughter’s life has passed by me and I feel like I didn’t fully appreciate it.
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
What To Do With America’s Youth?
I don’t usually respond to letters to the editor sent to my newspaper, but since the following subject is directly linked to an article I wrote, I thought I would make an exception.
Going into this you should know that Yvette Clark, who was arrested July 20 for slapping a juvenile she apparently didn’t know, doesn’t refute the fact that she hit the 15-year-old boy.
It should also be noted the boy’s reaction is not known for sure. It has been rumored he was cussing at several people at the time, but that information hasn’t been confirmed and was not listed in the police report.
Yvette Clark’s response to the article “Fight over smoking lands woman in jail” was thus:
This is not about a woman assaulting a juvenile. After it was over, the grandmother said to me, “You need God.” She didn’t know who I was. And grief filled my heart as I thought to myself, “that was God.”
Cigarette smoke is killing you and rebellion is killing your grandson. And God is trying to save the both of you. What’s ahead for them?
This case is not about a woman assaulting a juvenile.
It’s about a mother disciplining a teenager before it’s too late. But now, in this day and age, any chastising is against the law. I thought to myself, “Why is he with his grandmother? Where are his parents? Whatever happened to old fashion whippings that taught our youth to respect their elders, parents, teachers, principals and officers of the law?”
This fight is about real love, the “this is going to hurt me more than it’ll hurt you” kind of love. Nobody recognizes real love because they haven’t seen it in such a long time.
God help us for what we’ve allowed our own children and teenagers (to do). God help this whole nation because now we allow same-sex marriage and lesbianism, removing prayer out of our school districts, and allowing children to divorce their parents. Yes, it pains me to see so much bad.
Signed
Yvette Clark
Have you found yourself a little taken aback, trying to decide at what point you stopped agreeing with her rationale? Or do you whole-heartedly agree with Clark?
Although I agree with her that some youth need disciplining, where we differ is when she took disciplinary action into her own hands. It was not her place to slap, spank, yell at or discipline another person’s child in any way.
That responsibility should be reserved for the parents or grandparents, even if they aren’t going to do anything about it. The lack of a disciplinarian in certain juveniles’ lives does not give just anyone the right to assume that authority.
Clark is very upfront with the fact that she is a minister and that she believes her response was God working through her to show that boy obedience and authority. But I am almost positive that is not the way to accomplish that goal.
We are not here to judge others or punish those we consider “wicked.” That is for God to sort out through His divine intervention, not for us to decide.
It pains me also to see a world that is driven by money, sex and lies. Yet, slapping a 15-year-old boy isn’t going to fix the world’s problems. It isn’t even going to make that child see things as you would like them to. We could argue all day long about the solution to the disobedience of youth, but having a stranger slap a kid most certainly isn’t the answer.
Clark truly thinks God was working through her that day to rectify the wrongs that were taking place at Jaycee Park. I hope someday God works through someone else to show Mrs. Clark that there is a better way to handle the problems in society and that we are all His children who should seek to follow the example He set while He was on this earth for 33 years.
Going into this you should know that Yvette Clark, who was arrested July 20 for slapping a juvenile she apparently didn’t know, doesn’t refute the fact that she hit the 15-year-old boy.
It should also be noted the boy’s reaction is not known for sure. It has been rumored he was cussing at several people at the time, but that information hasn’t been confirmed and was not listed in the police report.
Yvette Clark’s response to the article “Fight over smoking lands woman in jail” was thus:
This is not about a woman assaulting a juvenile. After it was over, the grandmother said to me, “You need God.” She didn’t know who I was. And grief filled my heart as I thought to myself, “that was God.”
Cigarette smoke is killing you and rebellion is killing your grandson. And God is trying to save the both of you. What’s ahead for them?
This case is not about a woman assaulting a juvenile.
It’s about a mother disciplining a teenager before it’s too late. But now, in this day and age, any chastising is against the law. I thought to myself, “Why is he with his grandmother? Where are his parents? Whatever happened to old fashion whippings that taught our youth to respect their elders, parents, teachers, principals and officers of the law?”
This fight is about real love, the “this is going to hurt me more than it’ll hurt you” kind of love. Nobody recognizes real love because they haven’t seen it in such a long time.
God help us for what we’ve allowed our own children and teenagers (to do). God help this whole nation because now we allow same-sex marriage and lesbianism, removing prayer out of our school districts, and allowing children to divorce their parents. Yes, it pains me to see so much bad.
Signed
Yvette Clark
Have you found yourself a little taken aback, trying to decide at what point you stopped agreeing with her rationale? Or do you whole-heartedly agree with Clark?
Although I agree with her that some youth need disciplining, where we differ is when she took disciplinary action into her own hands. It was not her place to slap, spank, yell at or discipline another person’s child in any way.
That responsibility should be reserved for the parents or grandparents, even if they aren’t going to do anything about it. The lack of a disciplinarian in certain juveniles’ lives does not give just anyone the right to assume that authority.
Clark is very upfront with the fact that she is a minister and that she believes her response was God working through her to show that boy obedience and authority. But I am almost positive that is not the way to accomplish that goal.
We are not here to judge others or punish those we consider “wicked.” That is for God to sort out through His divine intervention, not for us to decide.
It pains me also to see a world that is driven by money, sex and lies. Yet, slapping a 15-year-old boy isn’t going to fix the world’s problems. It isn’t even going to make that child see things as you would like them to. We could argue all day long about the solution to the disobedience of youth, but having a stranger slap a kid most certainly isn’t the answer.
Clark truly thinks God was working through her that day to rectify the wrongs that were taking place at Jaycee Park. I hope someday God works through someone else to show Mrs. Clark that there is a better way to handle the problems in society and that we are all His children who should seek to follow the example He set while He was on this earth for 33 years.
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