Column: March Sadness Reigns
Today should be the day. The First Four in Dayton, Ohio has wrapped up. The field of 64 is officially set. Everyone has picked their champion. Kansas is already on upset alert. All the twelve over five matchups are being eyed by millions. Somewhere, that one madman has picked the sixteen to beat the one seed.
However, the best we will get this season is highlights of Kris Jenkins winning the national championship for Villanova, still crying over Bryce Drew leading Valparaiso over Ole Miss, and a lot of flashbacks of Gus Johnson proclaiming someone “hit that from the parking lot.”
This past week has been one of the tumultuous in the sports world that we will probably ever experience. We live in a time where legitimately all sporting events have come to a halt. Even our non-contact sports like NASCAR and golf are at a standstill with no resumption in sight.
If anything, all of us sports fans are now realizing how much we have taken these events we love for granted. Sports have always seemed inevitable and long-term postponement never been considered in the realm of possibility. Movies always get moved from their release dates. Concerts and shows sometime get canceled. There is always sports going on somewhere in our world.
COVID-19 has taken it all away from us. As we have essentially self-quarantined ourselves besides essential work and travel, our day-to-day lives have been forced to move the focus onto other things.
This isn’t for the worst. Sure, I absolutely miss watching sports as much as the next, but this has given us opportunities to broaden our horizons and try new things. Bible studies, charity work, or even just spending more time with families is something that we can all be guilty of not allowing ourselves time for that we now can focus on, myself included.
So, as much as I want to be watching the NCAA Tournament, I have found plenty of enjoyment spending time with family, friends, and working on my golf game. This whole situation may be a blessing in disguise when we all look back on it in the coming years.
However, don’t be mistaken. I’ll still be counting the days until I can watch the Fall Edition of the Masters and cheering on my Rebs in September with 60,000 other fanatics. Until then, be safe and be smart.
