Cheering on Team USA

I'm just going to come clean here and admit that I am a total geek for the Olympics. For as long as I can remember, I have paused life as much as possible to be able to camp out at home and watch Team USA take on the world. I even remember staying up way past my bedtime at the age of 8 to watch the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics in Seoul, Korea. So far this year, the snow and ice on the ground as well as having two sick kids at home has helped me in this endeavor.

While I have never really considered myself an athlete, I have always enjoyed celebrating the athletic achievements of others. Several of my close childhood friends were and still are amazing athletes and are living crazy amazing lives of there own in pursuit of their own athletic achievements. I recently took the Clifton Strengths Finder through our church and I found out that one of my strengths is "maximizer" which means that I like to use my strengths while at the same time spending time with other people who use their strengths. This applies even if their strengths are not the same as my own. When I am around people who are pursuing their own goals then I am inspired to more diligently and faithfully pursue my own.

I think the greatest thing about the Olympics is its multiple layers. Yesterday, I teared up as I watched a cross country skier from Brazil complete the Women's 10k. She didn't finish anywhere close to the medals, but she didn't finish last. Simply finishing the race was a meaningful accomplishment for her. I think there is something so inspiring about a person who is so dedicated to pursuing her own personal best regardless of whether they have any hope at a medal.

Of course, more than anything when I watch the Olympics I am watching to cheer on Team USA. Skiing, snowboarding, skating, hockey, and yes even curling, I watch it all while keeping a close eye on the medal count. In fact, I love hockey probably more than any true southern girl should, but I am totally stoked that 6 of the players from our local NHL team are playing on their respective national teams including one, Ryan Suter, on Team USA.

For the duration of the Vancouver Olympics I am going to include the Team USA Updates and Overall Medal count in the sidebar of this blog. I will also have the Hockey Updates just below any new post.