Closing Ceremonies

We have spent the last two weeks indulging an addiction to Olympic coverage. We have always loved the Games (our first TV came out of its closet every four years), but they attained extra meaning for our family in 2002. We were living in Salt Lake City at the time, and were deeply involved with the host-city experience.

I feel compelled to reflect on the Olympiad. Still, what can I say that has not been said? That has not become a cliché? Let's talk about fears and hospitality.

In Salt Lake and Vancouver (and, no doubt, in Sarajevo and Lillehammer) local citizens expressed mixed feelings about hosting the Games. Yes it was exciting, but there were voices of dismay. It was a costly endeavour; the money should be spent on the poor. Preparation was disruptive: I-15 was all-but impassable with construction for years. Scandals of personal greed dominated the headlines. Fears proliferated: fears of traffic jams, protesters, and partying in the streets; fears of becoming a terrorist target. After six years of public debate and consternation, many of us just wanted it to be over!

It was then, with the Opening Ceremonies, that a Miracle occurred. When the world arrived on its doorstep, the community demonstrated an overflowing hospitality. Adamant naysayers joined in extending the welcome. Volunteers worked long hours in the cold, and locals partied in the streets with their guests. Traffic flowed, and patience prevailed when it failed. Stories of strangers helping strangers flooded the news. People rose to the occasion because the Games, in the long run, brought forth our common humanity. Even though they spoke a different language and represented a different culture, it turned out that, up close, “folks was folks”.

Since 2002, the Olympic spirit is, for me, about more than sport. It about more than the inspiration of athletes who set and meet superhuman goals. It is about more than bouncing back from adversity and being gracious when things don’t work out our way. It is about all of those things, but there is more.

The rest of the Olympic story tells of people willing to set aside opinions and preconceptions, and to embrace the world when it “showed up for dinner.” It is about a generous culture of hospitality that rises to the challenge when the need is evident. I am inspired by that story to hold my own fears at bay, and to open my heart to the unknown with trust in a happy outcome.

What stories, people, and messages from the Winter Games mean the most to you? What do they inspire in your own life?

Until the next time, go well.

Pam
www.wellbuddies.com