Football is one of my current exercises in humility. I really don't know much about it. I am fortunate to be with someone who is patient enough to answer very simple questions that often start with, "But why..."
We watch Stanford football. Last night I fell in fan love with Coach Shaw. He seems quite different to me than Coach Harbaugh. Coach Harbaugh reminded me of Coach Taylor from "Friday Night Lights," charismatic, volatile, brilliant. Coach Shaw seems kind of Zen to me. When three key players were injured last night during the game, he seemed quite calm. He seems very smart and quiet. I really like Coach Shaw.
Here are a few things I learned last night during the game:
1. Mike can make really good chicken wings. This is a fact. I'm hoping it can become a tradition.
2. If you have possession of the football, you can roll over a pile of bodies and keep running. However, if your elbow touches the ground, that's it.
3. Sometimes it's best just to take a knee in the end zone.
4. Announcers can be extremely annoying. Actually this is nothing new, but it was hammered home to me again last night. I had to file it under "Exercise in Humility," and keep reminding myself that I know very little about the game, and I kind of need to listen, although I a) hated the tone of their voices. Uber-sincerity to me is like chalk going up a blackboard, and b) they would say one thing and then say something completely contradictory. I know situations evolve, and things may completely change, but there didn't seem to be any reflection on things previously said. I realized that when I watched baseball and the television analysts annoyed me, I would just listen to the radio guys. Maybe I need to learn more about the football radio guys.
5. I may need to have more faith in things. Last night in the first half, with the injuries and the way Stanford was playing, I had serious doubts. They ended up winning handily. This happened to me recently watching "Iron Chef America," when I thought Chef Garces was in serious trouble, and he ended up with a perfect score, only the second time that's happened in Iron Chef America history. It would be nice to be able to enjoy watching and not think I know how it's going to turn out, especially when I don't know all that much about what I'm watching. These are my current life lessons as I Fear the Tree and marvel at Luck.
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