Last night the unthinkable happened. The Cavaliers won their fourth straight game against the Detroit Pistons to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. I will not pretend to be a big basketball fan, but I've been close enough to my mom and stepfather to get a sense of the excitement. The city has been abuzz with excitement. Couple that with the fact that the Indians went into today's game 3.5 games up on the Tigers (it looks like they'll finish 2.5 up) and you've got some pretty exciting times in old C-Town. I was happy to hear that the town didn't riot (though they might if the Cavs win the finals). That was truly an answer to prayer.
I understand that there is a blog out there called "God hates Cleveland sports". Given the history in the past 40+ years, it would certainly seem so. I don't think that it makes sense to pray for the results of a sporting event. However, I do think that God is in charge of everything. I wonder if the long championship droughts in cities like Cleveland and Buffalo have to do with breaking the cities' idolatrous relationship with their teams?
This occurred to me one day as I was stepping out of the shower. I wouldn't try to argue this with Wayne Grudem or even with my wife. It's just something I'm rolling around in my head.
Showing posts with label cleveland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cleveland. Show all posts
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Monday, May 28, 2007
Being a Clevelander
Last night was a good night for Cleveland sports fans. My mom and I went to a local family-friendly restaurant/sports bar to see Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals as well as Game 3 of the Indians series at Detroit. The Indians managed to pull off a 3 game sweep of the Tigers and the Cavs restored a bit of hope by winning to make the series 2-1 in favor of Detroit. If they had lost things would have looked really bleak.
What's funny is to see the effects of Cleveland on both my mom and me. My mom doesn't really have the mentality to handle watching NBA Basketball. The lead changes kill her. Missed shots late in the fourth quarter send her blood pressure skyrocketing. I have the same problem with the Indians. They won 5-3, but they also managed to let the Tigers get men on the corners in the 8th before getting out of the inning. It was a bit nerve-wracking, but fun overall.
The point is that Clevelanders are self-defeating. The city hasn't seen a major sports championship since 1964 (otherwise known as 9 years pre-me). The Browns got close to the Super Bowl in 1986 and 1987, but didn't quite make it. I'm pretty sure the Cavs have never been to the Eastern Conference Finals before. The Indians were one out away from winning the World Series in 1997, but ended up losing. This is what we've grown to expect.
In other words, even if the Indians do keep playing well enough to get into the playoffs I'll be a bit incredulous. I'll be incredulous until they squeeze the last out of winning the World Series. Even then I might have dreams that the ball was dropped and that the game kept going. The city so badly wants a major sports championship, but it hasn't happened in my generation. This could be the year.
What's funny is to see the effects of Cleveland on both my mom and me. My mom doesn't really have the mentality to handle watching NBA Basketball. The lead changes kill her. Missed shots late in the fourth quarter send her blood pressure skyrocketing. I have the same problem with the Indians. They won 5-3, but they also managed to let the Tigers get men on the corners in the 8th before getting out of the inning. It was a bit nerve-wracking, but fun overall.
The point is that Clevelanders are self-defeating. The city hasn't seen a major sports championship since 1964 (otherwise known as 9 years pre-me). The Browns got close to the Super Bowl in 1986 and 1987, but didn't quite make it. I'm pretty sure the Cavs have never been to the Eastern Conference Finals before. The Indians were one out away from winning the World Series in 1997, but ended up losing. This is what we've grown to expect.
In other words, even if the Indians do keep playing well enough to get into the playoffs I'll be a bit incredulous. I'll be incredulous until they squeeze the last out of winning the World Series. Even then I might have dreams that the ball was dropped and that the game kept going. The city so badly wants a major sports championship, but it hasn't happened in my generation. This could be the year.
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