I’m not an avid sports fan, but I do keep track of what our local teams are doing and hope that they do well.  I was therefore pleased when our Patriots made it to the Super Bowl.  I was a little surprised that evening when virtually the entire local news was coverage of the game, mostly scenes from the game with no information about exactly what was going on while there was talk about what had happened.  The news would not have been particularly helpful to one who had not seen the game and was unnecessary to one who had.  It seems there must have been some other important news.  For virtually the entire week since there has been almost nonstop coverage of what each of the players is thinking or feeling about going to the championship, whether or not this is a “revenge” game, etc.  Enough is enough, already.  I was, therefore, dismayed this morning as I drove to Church to find my favorite PBS radio station presenting an interview with a sports psychologist, talking about preparation for the Super Bowl.

Still, there were some valid points made. She talked first about the fact that it is not the same teams that are playing. Among the Patriots there are only a half dozen players that played in the last matchup.  Oh, some important ones—the coach and Quarterback, but not the entire team, so the emotions and concerns are different.  Still for all there is the “memory” of being defeated in such an important game and while it is fine to say that it is just another game, it isn’t.  So, how do you prepare?

First, the emotions—the anger, the fear, the excitement, the anticipation are there.  There is no way to just “make them go away.”  Also, the memories are there; The mistakes that were made, the things that might have changed the result—things that could have been done differently.

There is no way to make all that baggage just go away but when it comes to preparing, you just do what you do best.  When it comes time to play, just put all that stuff behind you and use your skills to play your best.

Good advice in lots of situations!          
Rev. Clarke