"MADNESS" IS GOOD FOR US
By
Lloyd Garver
North Carolina defeated Illinois last week, officially becoming the best men's college basketball team in the country and ending March Madness. I know it was already April, but that's the nature of this madness -- it's so mad that March can't contain it.
For two weeks, millions of people entered office pools, watched game after game on TV, cheered for colleges they never even heard of, and maybe even went to some games and cheered even louder. And for two weeks, those who didn't care about the tournament just shook their heads and wondered, "How can they care so much about something as insignificant as a game with all the serious problems going on in the world?" Perhaps the reason we care so much is precisely because of the problems in the world.
March Madness is a great escape from the real world. For a little while, people had some relief from thinking about family and work problems, the war, social security, and kids shooting up their schools. Maybe the relief was only for a couple of hours or even just a few minutes at a stretch, but this kind of escape from reality is a good thing for all of us. While you're screaming wildly because some 19-year-old kid jumps over another kid to dunk the ball, it's very hard to wonder if you'll be able to afford medical prescriptions in a few years. When you're watching a player somehow defy gravity and fly across the court to make a steal, you're not worried about that weird kid that's dating your daughter.
Am I suggesting turning away from reality, sticking our heads in the sand, and just not paying attention to things that upset us? Yes, I am. Not all the time. Just now and then, and for short bursts. I think it recharges our batteries and makes us stronger to go back and face the real world. Besides, it's fun.
So many of us had such a good time during the tournament that those who don't care about sports should be able to get the same benefits. Everybody should have their version of March Madness.
It doesn't really matter what you do, as long as you find something that you feel passionately about that you can lose yourself in. Choose something other people find frivolous or just don't get. If the people around you aren't thinking, "You've lost your mind, wasting so much time on something so unimportant," you probably chose the wrong thing. You might feel passionate about your children, religion, or politics, but you're going to need something else for this kind of diversion. Otherwise, before you know it, you'll be thinking about serious stuff again.
It can be reading, the theater, playing an instrument, sumo wrestling, glass blowing, or pollinating the perfect petunias. But it has to be something that you can't do while you're watching the news on television. Knitting and crossword puzzles are supposed to be good at warding off Alzheimer's, but it's too easy to be distracted by bad news while you're making a scarf or trying to think of a four-letter word for a baby marsupial.
For this to work, you have to get so involved in something that you can't imagine why anyone in the world would dare to call you while you're doing it. You have to get so immersed in this activity while you're doing it that you can't think about anything else. That's why I recommend always turning off the stove before you start doing your thing.
For things like the basketball championship, there can be a letdown once it's over. Right now, many people are feeling lost and asking themselves, "What am I going to act completely irrationally about tomorrow? Will I have to wait another year before I find something to divert me from all the painful things in life?" For those going through this "post-tournament depression," I've got good news: the baseball season started last week.
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