March 5, 2008

For the Unbridled Joy of the Game - and so much more.

By Dr. Bud E. Bryan

Austin, Texas. Brett Favre retiring? Yes, we all knew it was inevitable, but still this is a big deal, because he was so much more than just a quarterback.

Brett Favre was a throwback to a better era.

There, I said it. Other commentators dance around this all the time because they don't want to sound "old" or be accused of wallowing in nostalgia, but Brett represented a better era in sportsmanship, where personal integrity and substance actually mattered and where athletes played the game with a joy and a passion and with a belief in doing things the "right" way.

Sure, it's corny and oh so old school, but Brett Favre accomplished greatness through hard work and a built-in drive that knew no bounds. The man lived to play football. He loved to play football. He understood that it was just a game, but he respected the traditions and the heroes that came before him and he wasn't going to let them down - ever. Because he viewed it as a privilege to be able to play professional football, and it showed on every play and in every game for 17 memorable seasons

It was so refreshing to see Brett Favre go about playing the game. You were up and down and up again. Sheer exhilaration was regularly punctuated by gut-wrenching disappointment, sort of like life its own self, come to think of it.

In our shallow, media-saturated world where a five minute video constitutes a "lengthy" deep-dive into an important subject and where the average adult's attention span can be measured out in seconds, when I see an individual of the quality of Brett Favre leave the stage it pains me. Because he represents one less brace of humanity and integrity, and one less beacon of strength that we can count on to refocus us in this screwed-up world.

As we watch our so-called public discourse dissolve into a vicious, never-ending cacophony of noise and counter-noise, and as we see athlete after athlete conduct themselves in a reprehensible manner - and yet are automatically given a place at the table of import in our cellophane-shallow society - the news of Brett Favre's retirement is sad.

Brett Favre played the game the way it was meant to be played, and he played it with heart and an unbridled joy that made us all feel young again. When I watched him play, it was as if time stood still, and I could hold off the encroaching reality of the world for three brief but glorious hours.

I will miss him, but I will miss what he represents even more.

Adios until the next time.