Committment

I'm not a big sports fan. And of all the professional sports out there, I care about football the least. I couldn't care less about football. And I think making heros out of successful athletes is just asking for trouble. But I always read Sport's Illustrated's profile of their Sportsman of the Year, and this year it was Saints' quarterback Drew Brees. (I had to look at the cover to type this, I am that clueless about football.)

It was a very long article and as you might expect, down right worshipful of him. He's a dedicated team player, a caring father and husband, and has given a lot back to the New Orleans community, in addition to winning the Superbowl.

The part of the article that really struck me was a quote from his memoir Coming Back Stronger about when he proposed to his wife, Bethany.

"...when I put the ring on Bethany's finger, I said 'For better or for worse, till death do us part.' Period. No matter how bad it could possibly get, I am committed. It's not about happiness. It's not about a feeling. I committed myself for the rest of my life, and I promised never to walk away."

What an emphatic, beautiful explanation of what it means to commit. In one way, he's saying it's not about the romance, it's not about those giddy, lovely moments that make you fall in love. Yet just saying that, it's incredibly romantic. He's pledging to stand by his wife through thick and thin, through ups and downs, external and internal to their relationship.

It's beautiful.

I wish them a long, happy marriage and a successful football career. Here's one athlete that makes a good hero.

More later,

Tammar