The Power Of Sport!

Yesterday evening was a roller coaster for me.   I felt anxious, anger, confusion, frustration, happiness, excitement, joy, and insanity all within four hours.

Now, not all of that was the game, some was self-made...

 Shit, hosting a party takes a toll on me.  I like to make sure everything is perfect.  But now…

Just a feeling of tranquility…for something I had no part whatsoever in accomplishing.

And that's because today Chicago is a champion.  Not the first one, certainly not the last, but for me the most meaningful.

Last night, I watched a Hockey game with 20 people, some I’ve known almost my whole life, some just over eight months.

At one point, I stood off to the side and looked to what was before me; everyone different and unique in their own way; backgrounds, ethnicities, different places in life.

For whatever reason, that’s cool to me.

Everyone looked like they enjoyed themselves and if I’m wrong, kudos for faking it real well.

Afterwards, I ventured three blocks down to a vast stadium, built right in the middle of what used to be considered a rough part of town…

And shared a bottle of tequila with five random Asian Guys...never will see each other again.

Loud pops in the air courtesy of the fireworks we set off...

 Ladies, if you ever wanna see a dude turn into a little kid for an hour, give him some bottle rockets and a roman candle or two.

Last night was all love in the second city and I felt a sense of pride being apart of it because like any big city, negative things are said about this town; segregated, corrupt, violent.

And it obviously wouldn’t be said unless there’s some truth to it...  

Not as extreme as outsiders make it sound, but not completely perfect either.

But last night, for one night, all that bullshit was put aside.  No one cared if you were Rich, Poor, White, Black, Asian, Latin, Arab, Indian, Young, Old, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Straight, Gay, Drunk or Sober.

Didn’t matter if you had grown up in the City, Northwest Indiana, Oak Park, Elmwood Park, Berwyn, Palatine, Arlington Heights, Evanston, Oak Lawn, Evergreen Park, Elgin, Downers Grove, Hinsdale, Oak Brook, Lyons, Elmhurst,  Chicago Heights, Flossmore, Skokie, Riverside, Brookfield, Hillside, Bellwood, Glenwood, River Forest, Lake Forest, Buffalo Grove, Streamwood, Niles, Westchester, Park Ridge, Winnetka, Waukegan, Forest Park, Cicero, Glenbrook, Oak Forest, Hillcrest, Romeoville, Aurora or Naperville.

Didn’t matter if you had been a Hockey fan your entire life or if you were just watching for the first time...

You were out in unity to celebrate two things: The sweater with the Indian head logo and that white flag with the red stars and blue stripes

That’s the power of a city you love and most importantly, that’s the power of sports man.

-WST