Why We Need Winter (Olympic) Sports

I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields….And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says “Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again.” – Lewis Carroll

Those closest to me know how much I dread the arrival of Winter.  While friends have tried to comfort me, telling me that nature is just taking a nap, I still yearn for the rays of a warm sun, a soft carpet of grass under my feet, and the sweet aroma of flower blossoms.  I remind myself (and reluctantly accept) that without the gray there are no vibrant hues of nature’s Spring tapestry;  without the frost, ice, and snow there will be no warm sunshine.  For several months, I must wait patiently for Spring’s return.

Which is why winter sports are so important.  With this week’s announcement that the NHL and players union had finally reached an agreement (therefore a shortened hockey season starting  soon), it reminded me how much I need sports to get me through the winter months.  Uninterested in football and basketball, hockey and the Winter Olympics are my saving graces.  Especially the Winter Olympics.

While I’m equally passionate about both the Summer and Winter Olympics, I can’t lie and say I watch them both with equal enjoyment.  The Winter Olympics edges out the Summer Games by a very slim margin (with emphasis on slim).

Why would someone like me–someone who dreads the coming of Winter– prefer the Winter Games?  It is that distaste for Winter which makes me appreciate the Winter Olympics all the more.  As a child, I always felt trapped during the winter months, stuck in a valley surrounded by gray mountains.  The chance of snow or ice (and dangerous roads) often prevented chances of escape until Spring, and the area was absent of any ice rinks or ski slopes (not that I didn’t lobby our future governor for an ice rink).   The Winter Olympics was the perfect escape while still stuck in my valley, ironically a refuge from the intolerable  throes of Winter.

The Winter Olympics never garners ratings equal to its summer counterpart, which I find odd considering how important it is.  For those of us who yearn for warmer weather, the Winter Olympics is all the more crucial to our sanity!  Yes, hockey will certainly help relieve some of my winter blues, but I can also begin looking ahead to the Sochi Games of 2014 which is just a little more than a year away.  With no Olympics in 2013, come February 2014 I will be desperate.  The Winter Olympics will be the perfect tonic, restoring the warmth and nourishment my soul needs.

392 days and counting.

Faster, Higher, Stronger.