Jerry Rice Retires

Very few people ever get even close to being the very best at something. That is part of the human condition. There always seems to be someone faster, smarter, or stronger than we are. It is true. Those of you who think you are the fastest, strongest, or smartest are probably kidding yourselves! When I see someone who has broken out to become the best at something s/he loves, all I can do is cheer. Jerry Rice is someone worth cheering for. He has shown the amazing potential of the human body and the human spirit.

I don't care if you don't like football. There are a lot of things that do not interest me (modern dance, country music, poker, chess...), but when I see greatness there, I am still amazed by it. Jerry Rice is amazing that way. He is an artist. He has taken the sometimes brutal, always competative world of football and made it beautiful. Go ahead, look at the pictures on the internet, watch the highlight films on the NFL Network. They will be showing them, no doubt, for a very long time. As one reporter said last night, "No one doubts that he is the greatest Wide Reciever to play the game. The only question is whether he might also be the greatest football player ever."

Now I know that there are people out there who are as passionate about football as I am. I know that there are many casual fans who will be interested. There are others for whom football just isn't their bag. However, I know that there are others who feel that they are above watching professional sports. Even you, oh cynical ones, you should be impressed. I have never played football outside of pickup games. I am not an athlete in any real sense of the term. However, I cannot play the drums either and I appreciate the work of Lars Ulrich. I cannot dance (modern or otherwise), but I enjoy watching people like Savion Glover. So it is with Jerry Rice. May he have a great and productive retirement. At least one uncoordinated geek will miss him on Sundays.