For 3 weeks in March every year the Div 1, 2, 3, NAIA and NIT NCAA Men’s and Women’s basketball tournaments are in full swing. Thousands of male and female student-athletes thirsting for that one shining moment lay it all out on the court to be crowned NCAA National Champion. In other words, win 6 (5 in NAIA/NIT) games in a row, and you are a Champion. I love that and here’s why. On any given day or night, any team regardless of where they are seeded in the tournament can win and advance. How exciting is that? On the flip side though, on any given day or night your 6 months of practices, film sessions, travel, sleeping at odd times in hotels, endless meetings, games, and perhaps your senior year, all comes to a crashing halt. It’s an emotional rollercoaster.
Sound familiar though? For many reading this perhaps not, however there might be a few people thinking, yeah, sounds like life! In life things can be going amazingly well one moment and in the next, things can come crashing down. Last Thursday night it did for Phil Cofer of the Florida State University basketball team. After winning their first game of the NCAA Div 1 tournament, Phil was informed that his dad passed away. One moment the team gets their first win and are on an emotional high and moments later, they are consoling their teammate. Just like life. Highs and lows. Experiences we can control (like winning a basketball game) and some that we can not (like the passing of a friend or relative).
So what’s the point you might be asking yourself. The point is simple and challenging at the same time. When you wake up each day, be grateful you're alive. When you see the people in your life that you love, tell them. When you’re hanging with your friends, tell them how much you appreciate their friendship. When you can, do something for someone else asking for nothing in return. When you work on your game, be thankful you can because not everyone is physically or mentally able to do so. And finally, appreciate the little things in life because it’s the little things that make a huge difference. In your life and others.         
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