One thing this shutdown should be making people all over realize...

...is that there is more to life than sports and entertainment.

And I'm not talking about just because of CO-VID19; that's really incidental to this. I'm talking about an approach to life that perhaps should be exercised a little bit more, and that's breaking free from something that, to be frank, may be a bit too important in everybody's lives, including my own.

Stop and think about this for a moment: we are tremendously blessed and privileged in this world with the amount of sports we can get now.  When I was a kid, ESPN was just coming on the scene.  Sports programming was not 24-7 like it is now.  Do you realize how many sports shows, channels, and events we can watch with the press of a button, or the click of a mouse?  

And while I would never take that away from myself or anybody else, don't you think there are people who make sports a little TOO high on their priority list?  

I'm not saying "sports are of the devil," not at all. I enjoy a good game like everybody else. I'm a bit bummed that MLB is going to have to wait, and also that the NCAA tourney isn't happening. They're a good thing, for kids who go to college and get a six-figure tuition paid for because of their hard work, for athletes who prove themselves worthy and take the next step to becoming professional, and for the fans like us who enjoy the performances, the rivalries, and the drama.

But at the same time, I know people (as I'm sure you do) who make sports the be-all-end-all of their existence, to the point where they neglect other, weightier matters in their lives.

I was talking about this with a colleague of mine, that in a sense this is a good thing.  How many people who idolize sports do so at the expense of other things in their lives which are far more important? How many have people or things in their lives who matter far more than the next ESPN update, but don't always act like it.  Don't laugh: I've seen people like this personally, and I'm sure you have as well.

And in the grand scheme of things, ladies and gentlemen (do we even have ladies here?), IT'S JUST A GAME. It is not the end of the world, it will not result in the collapse of society, it will not shorten our lives if we have to find other things to do for a couple of months while riding this out. It's time to connect with other things in our lives, things that might matter more.

And I know that a lot of people here already understand this, but again, I'm sure you all know others like I do, who don't.  And when (not "if," WHEN) this is all over, I hope that those people look back and realize that there are rich parts of their lives that they left unexplored, and hopefully revisited them.

This isn't meant to guilt anybody. It's just a reminder that maybe we make things priorities that may not be as serious in life as we might make them.

Anyway... off my soapbox now.  Stay safe, stay healthy, and remember that this too will pass.