Beech Tree News Network

When I reached seventy I thought the world couldn’t get any crazier. Now that I’m past eighty I see I was bad wrong.
I don’t know when you’ll see this but perhaps you will recall recently after a game, two professional football teams got into a big set- to over how much air the football had in it.  One side accused the other of letting some air out of the ball. Said it made the ball difficult to handle. Keep in mind these are grown men- not a bunch of kids playing on the school ground. Also be mindful of the fact each side plays with the same ball. I thought what was good for the goose, was good for the gander.
Of course the press hopped right on this like a hen on a June bug and began to stir the pot- acting as thought they had never heard of the good and gander.
Finally after days and days of chewing this rag ‘til it was limpy, some little pip-squeak voice- some person of no account- came “crying in the wilderness” – saying things the prudish didn’t want to hear, like: “what a difference does it make, both teams play with the same ball?”
How sad. When the world is falling down around us, all we are concerned with is how much air is in a football.
All this hints the question: have we “become too enamored with the games?” This is said to be one of the causes of the fall of the Roman Empire. Some folks, good folks, become rabid over their favorite sports teams. But you know this.
Recently I ran into an old friend from high school. A good friend. We got to discussing basketball. He was a University of Kentucky basketball fan, as I am. He always seemed an affable fellow. Heaven I didn’t realize he was as rabid UK fan, until I mistakenly pointed out some places I thought they could improve. This made him mad. This made me think I should have kept my thoughts to myself.
Another person I knew was so gone on UK basketball he would not watch a line game on TV. He would tape the game; if UK won he would watch the tape. If they happen to lose, he would not. Once a man told me that coon hunting was his whale life. Even to the detriment of his wife and kids. Nothing wrong with liking things, but when they take control over life regarding thing more important, we need to do some serious rethinking.
Kindest Regards….