How many of us have watched a great athlete, or team, find a way to "hold on" despite being way behind, or tired beyond endurance, or divided? It's easy to see the power of "finishing," but not so easy to attain it. How does a 60 year old man dig deep enough to face the hill in the final miles of the Boston Marathon? What do we mean when we say "dig deep"? Why does it move us so profoundly to witness it when it happens?
The answers to these questions are significant in our efforts to understand human character and identity. The essential human act is creativity--the act of making a self out of the chaos of our perceptions. We generate integrity through coherent actions and habits. We create wholeness and purpose and meaning with disciplined practice. Thus in music and sports, my favorite analogs for these life processes, we become greater, more complex, and more capable than we were. Attention, and will, and patience are essential to this work.
Great moments in sports are not trivial. Our hunger for such moments is an indication that they reveal something important about ourselves. And so do great moments of drama in movies, and great moments of accomplishment in the arts, and great moments of success in business or in everyday life. Some of the most moving moments in all these arenas involve the engagement of minds and bodies in what seem to be "losing battles." We love the "underdog," and are delighted when he or she finds a way to come back, to win--or even simply to make the other team struggle a bit more. We love to hear the old refrain "they're not giving up!"
What does it mean to "give up"? Why do we expect it even as we wish it away? Why are we amazed and satisfied when it does not happen? More on this topic soon. . .
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