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Holiday Chaos and Joy
December 19, 2008 by Kayte Christensen
Being a professional athlete has its perks, don’t get me wrong. Being paid well to do something you love and would play for fun, regardless, along with the adoring fans, being able to travel all across our own country and not to mention all over the world to countries like France, Italy, China and others! But let’s be realistic, being a professional athlete around the holidays is not much fun.
For instance, the Kings are in the middle of an eight-day, four-game trip. The rest of us are running around trying desperately to finish up our holiday shopping while fighting the crowds, planning our trips home to see our families or readying our own homes in anticipation of hosting our families. And if your family is anything like mine, the simple thought of spending four days with 30 people, eight of which are young children, as well as 12 dogs… well, I’m already getting a headache just thinking about it! Even though the holidays are synonymous with stress and self medicating, be it chocolate or adult beverages, I wouldn’t trade them for the world. But the professional sports world doesn’t necessarily recognize holidays!
Those of you who love great Christmas movies, you have to see “Holiday Inn” with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire. In case you haven’t seen it, I’ll give you the “Reader’s Digest” version. Crosby and Astaire are in the entertainment industry and Crosby decides he wants to leave the industry to live life on a farm. He quickly finds out life on the farm is a lot more labor intensive than he expected and he decides to get the best of both worlds by turning his farm into an inn that is only open on holidays! The night of his last performance, Crosby asks Astaire if he even knows what a holiday is. They’re “days of rest!” he replies. “But when you’re in show business, it likely means you give an extra performance!”
Athletes are no different than entertainers or performers. Take the Christmas Day match-up between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers or the Thanksgiving Day football games — the list goes on and on! It’s only one of the reasons I’m so thrilled to be an average person these days. During this holiday, when all the teams all over the world are lacing up their sneakers and throwing on their game and practice gear for another day at the office, I will be cuddled up on the couch with one of my nieces or nephews surrounded by my loud and frequently overbearing family and a dozen or so animals… and I will be loving every last ear-piercing minute of it!
Happy Holidays to you and yours! May they be filled with chaos and joy!
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