Most people would succeed in small things if they weren’t troubled with blind ambition. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Recently I read of a young Iowa basketball player named Jordan Bohannon who deliberately missed a free throw which would have broken the current record of 34 consecutive free throws held by a former player, Chris Street. Chris was killed 25 years ago in an automobile accident. Jordan gave up his chance to break that record because he wanted to continue to honor Chris Street. In an interview he said, “Life is bigger than basketball.” The fans were ready for a record to be broken, but Jordan was thinking not so fast.
In the Elite Eight tournament, Loyola players were seen to be holding up four fingers in the final minutes. Since a basketball game consists of a first half and a second half, I was a bit confused until the announcer explained that this was a gesture of the team’s commitment to the final four minutes of each and every game. Don’t be so fast to ever count them out. The character of that team has shone through any nay sayers and brought them to the Final Four.
Character is more important than accomplishments because character lasts for eternity. You might not remember Chris Street, but you will probably recall the unselfish act performed by Jordan Bohannon. You might not remember the highly rated teams in the tournament, but you’ll probably remember Loyola and Sister Jean.
Character consists of several things, but most of all, your values, your integrity, and your honesty. I like to think faith plays a huge part in their character development.
As we seek, to raise our children and grandchildren, it’s important to instill these in their lives. I watch a lot of different sports on a lot of different fields, and you can tell the kids whose parents believe in the development of character and display character themselves. They realize that winning isn’t the ultimate goal, it’s how you play the game!
Character is what you are when no one else is looking. copied