The sound of the buzzer pierced the air as the scores of fans alongside me leaped up screaming with happiness. Butler had won! The Bulldogs were headed to the Championship! Hinkle Fieldhouse was indeed alive and celebrating the victory. My sisters and I had come to join the mass of fans at the viewing party. It was indeed a thrilling evening; the Fieldhouse was packed with people, and the time-outs and breaks were set up to make one feel that this was the actual game we were experiencing. Earlier, I was hesitating in my decision to go, but I certainly do not regret it now. It is so fun to see all of Indianapolis- and even Indiana overall- rally together to support this one team from this tiny school. And for the second year in a row, the Bulldogs have a chance at winning the championship.
~*~
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
In total contrast to Saturday, the cheering at Hinkle Fieldhouse was subdued. Three minutes to go, and the earlier frenzied noise of the substantial crowd had died down to a few half-hearted cheers. Three minutes to go, and the Butler Bulldogs trailed the U-Conn Huskies by thirteen points. I scanned the crowd and saw the solemn looks of resignation all around me. When many people began gathering their belongings and leaving the fieldhouse, we had to face the sad truth. The Bulldogs were going to lose the NCAA Championship game for the second year in a row.
The Bulldogs knew it too. After perhaps their worst night full of mistakes, they could not recover. Unlike last year, they did not even have the comfort of knowing that they played a good game. The looks on their faces from the plasma screen were heart-rending. I just kept thinking to myself, “If we are this disappointed, I cannot imagine how they feel right now.”
News articles this morning confirmed that thought. Reports poured in, telling of their breakdowns in the locker room after the game. Just reading about it brought tears to my eyes. And yet, I was moved by the stories that told of the clarity that moment brought to them: it was truly not about winning, or even ultimately how they played last night. Though the scars remain, what really mattered is that they were a team, a unit that loved and cared about each other.
I could empathize with that realization. Here I was, getting caught up in the defeat of my favorite basketball team. As sad as it was, it reminded me how small this event is in the grand spectrum of life. Yes, it was disappointing, but there are far greater and more glorious things in life than a basketball game. There are far more things worthy of focusing my time and mental energy on. Lord, thank You for using this game to remind me, as You did last year at this time, to invest my heart in what truly matters. Teach me to lay up incorruptible treasure in heaven.
“...They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.” ~ 1 Corinthians 9:25
