We truly are in the midst of uncharted waters, especially for those of us that cover sports for a living. The stadiums are empty, and the ball fields are bare. Nascar, golf, the NBA, hockey and soccer are all postponed. No pro sports, no college sports and no youth sports for now.
So, what do we do with our time? Last night was one of the first Friday nights in over a decade where I wasn’t coaching, watching a game, taking a kid to practice or reporting from a game. I decided to simply sit down and have dinner with my wife and kids, my parents and my in-laws. We ate, we laughed, we played games and we talked for 6 straight hours. It was a very good night.
For once in my life I’ve been given the gift of time and I don’t plan to waste it. While many of us search for things to do, I’m going to play catch more, shoot some hoops, go hiking and biking, read some books and hang out with my kids. They’ll be home for six weeks and instead of being bitter that there’s no school or youth sports, I’m going to make the most of it.
My hope is sooner than later sports will be back for all of us to enjoy. I’m hopeful the seniors in high school will have a chance to finish strong. I’m hopeful it won’t be long before we’re all watching the Sounders, the Mariners and the Storm and gearing up for the Summer Olympics. But my hope is also that we come back with a better appreciation for sports and what they mean to us. My hope is that maybe we don’t yell and scream so much at the refs and umps for trying to do their jobs. Maybe we don’t yell at our own kids for striking out or missing a lay-in. Maybe we don’t talk behind our coaches back when he or she doesn’t start our kids.
Maybe we simply appreciate sports and the moments. Maybe we say, “it’s a joy to watch you play,” “thanks for officiating or game,” and “thanks for coaching my kid”. Maybe we don’t leave T-Mobile park in a bad mood because the Mariners lost and rather, we savor the moment of watching the great game of baseball in a beautiful city. Maybe we don’t curse at our TV when Russell Wilson throws a pick or lose our minds when Stefan Frei gives up a goal. Maybe we simply appreciate sports, our kids, our coaches, our umpires and our teams just a little bit more and enjoy all the moments. I know I will. It’s very hard right now, I get it. I’m coach, a dad of three athletes, including one that does a spring sports at Washington State and a sportscaster in one of the best sports cities in the World. Stay positive! Sports we’ll be back, we’ll get thru this together and hopefully we’ll enjoy sports even more when it does return.
Thank you. Chris Egan, King 5 Sports