Life is like Basketball

Will Smith told me something yesterday. Ok, he didn't speak directly to me. And he didn't even say it yesterday. But the message was clear: Life is like Basketball.

As a Hoosier, I'd like to say "DUH!!!" but let me tell you why I think Will Smith hit the nail on the head during this interview with Jimmy Fallon.

Mr. Smith said he went skydiving because he's 45. He said it's because he is in the third quarter of his life. When a basketball team comes out after halftime, they don't just sit back and let the game happen, they're powered up and they're ready to fight. I think that's an awesome analogy as to where I am in my life right now.

If we break down the game:

The first quarter is when you establish yourself and your team on the court. You fight hard and fair to get your points and make your presence known. I think that can be wrapped up in all the time we spend with the educational system. We're fighting to learn and achieve and just make ourselves present. We show up, we gain points/knowledge. We don't have much after the first quarter, but there's enough to prove we're vibrant, living, productive members of society.

The second quarter (where I am now…) is when you have to hold your own. The other team (your peers) has established themselves too. It's now a full on battle. You have to fight to prove that all those points you earned in the first quarter are going to get you ahead. You've got to continue to work hard. You've got to keep earning points/knowledge. You've gotta keep playing fair, but if you need to take a :30 timeout, that's ok. If you need to grab a squirt of water, that's ok. Rehydrate, regroup and get going again. The game's not over. You can't stop.

Halftime: I would venture to say this is where my parents are. Where many of my friends' parents are. Their kids have all ran into the locker room and they're sitting on the bleachers listening to the athletic director ask trivia questions for prizes. They're just waiting for the next half. It's an in-between. It's not fun. You don't know what the second half is going to bring. But, they're willing to stick it out.

The third quarter (where Will Smith is…) is when you come out swinging. You're pumped. Halftime has allowed you to reflect on the first half of your life. All those points that have added up. It's allowed you to make a plan on where to go next. It's allowed you to grab the ball and start playing the game for you. This is the time you get back up out on the court and dominate. You put up more points and you pull ahead.

The fourth quarter is something I'm not familiar with at all. My grandparents fall under this category, so this is my analogy: You see the end. You know it's coming. But you don't give up. You don't let the  other team come back and beat you. You keep fighting until the end. You get more points (and if you're Reggie Miller you get them all right at the last second) and you finish the game strong. You make sure when the game is over, you've left it all out on the court.

And that is why I think life is like basketball.
And we can go ahead and add the cheesy Wayne Gretzky quote:

<3XOT