Front page, above the fold of today's Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has a very sad picture. It features Pittsburgh Penguin Evgeni Malkin kneeling on the ice in front of the ice-encased image of the Stanley Cup and the words "Stanley Cup Final." The sub-headline declares "The final fury ends ...!
No one likes to lose unless there is something terribly skewed in their psyche. Losing is never fun. Losing always hurts.
Yesterday I heard Lanny Davis - attorney and former White House counsel to former President Bill Clinton and now STRONG Hillary for President supporter - talking about Hillary's apparently failed run for the White House. He said that neither she nor her supporters were emotionally ready for her to concede at this point in time. Now that is skewed! She lost. The fair rules of winning and losing require sportsmanship and character enough to be a good loser as well as a gracious victor.
Back to the Stanley Cup finals, I have to confess that I didn't see either the game last night (unless a few seconds here and there count) nor the nail-biter Monday night when the Penguins pulled off a win by one in the third overtime (unless a few mintues seated on the couch count). (Sometimes a girl has to do what she has to do which was sleep in my case!) The picture of Penguin Malkin on the ice is a classic study in dejection and disappointment.
We all lose. We may also have some wins along the way. Losing is a big learner! Losing teaches emotional strength and builds character. Paul the Apostle talks to the Corinthian church about not "losing heart." (2 Cor. 4:1) He is talking about faithful, plucky obedience even when we lose! He is talking about how our heart focus matters in the wins and losses of life. He is talking about winning well and losing with grace. He is talking about getting up to try and try again. We have to do that. Hillary has to do that. The Penguins have to do that. And we will all learn and sharpen our strength and character in the painful process of "not losing heart"!
Showing posts with label Hillary Clinton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hillary Clinton. Show all posts
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Groundhog Day, Hillary and the Super Bowl
Groundhog Day has come and gone ... and good ole' Phil has fancifully proclaimed six more weeks of winter (which in western PA really means at least three more months of winter or winter-like weather).
Then there is the flurry of presidential election speeches, debates and accusations flying through the airwaves. The only sure thing is what I heard one radio talk show host say on his radio program: "The sure thing about Super Tuesday is that obamaroddymcromney is going to be the clear winner." Got that right!
Whether it's Phil at Punxsutawney or Super Tuesday primaries, it's all pretty surface. It's a show for Groundhog Phil to pop out of his "media" hole and run back in. It has nothing to do with weather and whether winter will last one more week or three more months.
Watching Hillary and Bill enter their polling place yesterday to vote was amazing! All spifed up to the nines, they were smiling and waving - especially Hillary! Then the best part was her shrugging out of her coat while invisible hands caught it and she continued to grin and wave!
Last night I heard Hillary squeezed out one more tear for whatever reason. What have we come to that we cast votes for the most powerful position in the world on such shallow "qualifications"?
Just living with someone with the position and expertise doesn't qualify ANYONE else any where! My mother has lived with my dad for over sixty years but not a single minute of that living and loving qualifies her to quarterback the Navy football team which my dad did quite well many years ago. It's pretty idiotic, isn't it? Yet Hillary Clinton makes much the same claim as to her qualifications to be President of the United States of America.
Hillary has never run a city, county or state. A convincing argument could be made that she doesn't even know how to run her own home. She herself said she doesn't bake cookies! Eight years living in the White House doesn't constitute experience for the pay grade of President! When Dick Morris, former Clinton advisor who has seen the light, heard that Hillary was claiming qualification to be President based on 8 years living in the White House quipped, "... so has the pastry chef."
O, and not to forget Super Bowl 2008! The cheaters almost won. Some say they lost because they didn't cheat for once. And then there are the coaches - both "Grumpy Old Men"! Both come across as cranky, condescending and almost impossible to like - a great counterpoint to the coaches of Super Bown 2007: the man of integrity and faith Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts and Lovie Smith of the Chicago Bears. Watching the TV in this house, we were rooting for the Giants as much because we don't want cheaters to win as because we like the team. But the icing on the Super Bowl cake was the video of New England Patriots coach, Bill Belichick, literally running off the field and into the tunnel with 1 second left to play. Talk about role models and sportsmanship!
We live in a world sadly and badly in need of restoration! It seems like a world gone mad except for the sovereign hand of God putting His fingerprints on history and working His restoring grace into the hearts of those who love and serve Him.
Then there is the flurry of presidential election speeches, debates and accusations flying through the airwaves. The only sure thing is what I heard one radio talk show host say on his radio program: "The sure thing about Super Tuesday is that obamaroddymcromney is going to be the clear winner." Got that right!
Whether it's Phil at Punxsutawney or Super Tuesday primaries, it's all pretty surface. It's a show for Groundhog Phil to pop out of his "media" hole and run back in. It has nothing to do with weather and whether winter will last one more week or three more months.
Watching Hillary and Bill enter their polling place yesterday to vote was amazing! All spifed up to the nines, they were smiling and waving - especially Hillary! Then the best part was her shrugging out of her coat while invisible hands caught it and she continued to grin and wave!
Last night I heard Hillary squeezed out one more tear for whatever reason. What have we come to that we cast votes for the most powerful position in the world on such shallow "qualifications"?
Just living with someone with the position and expertise doesn't qualify ANYONE else any where! My mother has lived with my dad for over sixty years but not a single minute of that living and loving qualifies her to quarterback the Navy football team which my dad did quite well many years ago. It's pretty idiotic, isn't it? Yet Hillary Clinton makes much the same claim as to her qualifications to be President of the United States of America.
Hillary has never run a city, county or state. A convincing argument could be made that she doesn't even know how to run her own home. She herself said she doesn't bake cookies! Eight years living in the White House doesn't constitute experience for the pay grade of President! When Dick Morris, former Clinton advisor who has seen the light, heard that Hillary was claiming qualification to be President based on 8 years living in the White House quipped, "... so has the pastry chef."
O, and not to forget Super Bowl 2008! The cheaters almost won. Some say they lost because they didn't cheat for once. And then there are the coaches - both "Grumpy Old Men"! Both come across as cranky, condescending and almost impossible to like - a great counterpoint to the coaches of Super Bown 2007: the man of integrity and faith Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts and Lovie Smith of the Chicago Bears. Watching the TV in this house, we were rooting for the Giants as much because we don't want cheaters to win as because we like the team. But the icing on the Super Bowl cake was the video of New England Patriots coach, Bill Belichick, literally running off the field and into the tunnel with 1 second left to play. Talk about role models and sportsmanship!
We live in a world sadly and badly in need of restoration! It seems like a world gone mad except for the sovereign hand of God putting His fingerprints on history and working His restoring grace into the hearts of those who love and serve Him.
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