It is no secret that I am and will always be a HUGE sports fan. I love the thrill of the game and the high of victory. My family was originally from Philadelphia and the surrounding area, so I was brought up on the Phillies, the Flyers, 76ers, and the Eagles. I have stayed true to those roots and have ridden the crazy ride with these teams. Yesterday was one though that I wished I had passed up.
I try to provide varied experiences to my kids because I want them to be curious about life and have the courage to explore it with passion and great expectation. One way of doing this is by bringing them to an Eagles game. I have been criticized for doing this, because of what they might be exposed to in that environment. However, I choose to not place my kids in a bubble, but instead walk them through what they see and hear to help them understand how to process and respond. Besides, you cannot tell me what they see and hear at a stadium is much worse than what they hear on a school bus overloaded with tweens!
I packed up my kids and took them the season home opener against the biggest rival of the Eagles...the New York Giants. I had no idea what to expect, but I was truly giddy with the thought of having tickets to what I had hoped to be at least a great game. I thought my kids and I would cheer, sing the crazy Eagles fight song and make a positive memory. Some of that happened yesterday, but to my sadness I ended up helping make a life lesson. The Eagles played poorly, the Giants played exceptionally and emotions on both sides of the field were electrified. There were fights and finger pointing with accusations flying. There were words of frustration and hatred being spewed everywhere we turned. I was even being texted jabs and put downs throughout the game. I am by no means an innocent party in all of it. I have teased and tormented my fellow rivals in jest. But yesterday, it just felt dirty and hurtful.
My daughter asked why people hate the Philadelphia fans so much. The answer? Because a few over the line, need to get lives fans act in such a way that leave a lasting scar on the rest of us. Are we Eagles fans truly the "awful human beings" that people say we are? (I am being asked of this by my daughter who just last week stood up for a victim of bullying in her school.) No, we are not!! But what can we learn from this?
A few things, first is that it is our responsibility alone to keep our words and actions in check. We can choose to put out kindness, consideration and love or we can choose to perpetuate cruelty, selfishness and hatred. We also must learn to not allow the choices of others' words and actions to penetrate our being and receive the messages they are trying to convey. We must know who we are, what we stand for and find our identity there. We must stay true to ourselves with actions that sometimes are contrary to the majority. Lastly, we must still remember that there can be fun in competition and debate. We cannot walk around with a sense of fragility, but one of open mindedness to others thoughts and opinions and sometimes be willing to agree to disagree...and then LET IT GO!
How did we implement these thoughts yesterday? We sat in our stadium seats for a few moments as the last seconds ticked off the clock, we looked to our left, where Giants fans occupied the seats, we leaned forward, congratulated them on a well deserved win and thought to ourselves....just wait until November 20th!!
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