Like every other person in America, I am OBSESSED with the Olympics!

Before going further, there is something you should know about me.  I am NOT a sports fan….usually.  I do not go out of my way to go to sporting events.  I never went to a college football game in all 5 years I went to KSU. (Towards the end it got to be a point of pride to make it that long without going!)

Sure, I played sports up until middle school.  The only sport I was ever good out beside channel surfing was swimming.  Perhaps had I lived a different life I would have been a competitive swimmer.  (Though I am now more appreciative of sports than I was in college, because I am different than I used to be.)

So it is a rare occasion that I watch a game of any kind in entirety. My friends check the sky for flying pigs whenever this happens.

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However, during the Olympics, I turn into a different person, shouting at the TV and everything!  Not sure what it is?  I wouldn’t say that it is patriotism, nor the glitteriness of Olympic sport. (I am sure Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps are a draw!)

Look how stupid his grill looks!

No, I think that during the Olympics….anything can happen…anything!

• The Underdog can come from behind.
• The hopefuls or sure things can fall from their pedestal in devastation.
• The swimmers who have never swam in an Olympic sized pool can bring pride to their country and get the loudest applause.
• The young athletes who defy odds in everyday life, overcoming poverty, hardships, heartache, and injury can shine and defeat those who might have had everything handed to them.
• The athletes who have no country to claim as their own compete with proud an honor of their own story.
• Competitors strive to beat the odds and go further or faster than anyone before them.

My favorite moments are when the reporters tell the stories of these athletes.  These young people who train their entire lives for these Olympic moments.  When you get to see their proud parents and their joy in the fact that they have made it to the one place that has been at the end of their journey.

Why do we admire these athletes?  Why are we entranced by their stories and their abilities?

Because when I see those gymnasts defy gravity and fly through the air or Michael Phelps swim, we are in awe of human capabilities.  I am blown away by the fact that we are always able to do more than we believe.  

For me that is why I love the Olympics, because it proves to me that we are made for more than we even know or can fathom.  Perhaps that is the message the anthem of my school year, the message I want to share with my students. 

Missy Franklin, isn’t she adorable! I wish I could have her as a student!

Why do you watch the Olympics or sports in general?  (Maybe I can be convinced to watch more sports more than every for years.)