“Holy cow!”
Those who know me personally know that I am not the world’s biggest baseball fan. Generally I’ll take cycling’s two wheels over baseball’s nine innings any day. Nevertheless, I would be remiss if I didn’t take a moment this week to congratulate the Chicago Cubs on their first pennant since 1945. Given that Oakley has such a presence in the Chicagoland area, I know we have a good number of customers who were celebrating into the wee hours of Sunday morning.
Cubs fans have suffered a long time. They’ve been faithful, even through the curses (both history’s and their own salty ones, muttered after tough losses). This year’s historic team certainly benefitted from fan support, and indeed the players never missed an opportunity to express their appreciation. Throughout the playoffs, the energy in Wrigley Field seemed to have a huge impact on the Cubs’ performance.
It’s important to cultivate the right types of fans in our own lives, too. Sometimes we don’t have a choice who we play for, but sometimes our quality of life depends upon working for the right people. We like to know others have our back, are willing to stick with us when times are tough, and celebrate when the time is right.
It’s also important to be the right sort of fan as well. It’s worth checking ourselves now and again. Am I loyal? Am I being fair to all the players? Do I have the patience to endure the long haul, and do I keep showing up?
Again, congrats to all the Cubs’ fans out there, and a respectful tip of the cap to all of the competitors who challenged them along the way.
With that, I’ll leave you with a link to this video of the beloved Harry Caray from the last game of the 1991 season, in which he keeps the faith. “Someday,” he says, “the Chicago Cubs are going to be in the World Series.”
