A Great Time of the Year
The three to three-and-a-half months between the beginning of January in the middle of April is my favorite time of the year. Although college football is my favorite thing to watch, and that obviously doesn’t happen until fall, it’s this time of the year that truly makes me smile. This timeframe is so awesome and not because of the cold and snow.
It starts with the bowl games in college football and the NFL playoffs. You see the intensity of the athletes as they realize that the season is nearly over and this is amongst the last opportunities they have to prove themselves. There’s a sense of urgency and effort you don’t quite see as much during the regular season. It’s the top of the mountain, so to speak, of athleticism in the sport. It makes me appreciate the work, talent, dedication, teamwork, and effort they put forth, in attempting to reach their ultimate goals.
The Super Bowl follows. Not only the spectacle of the game, but I marvel at the manner in which one event can dominate an entire country and part of the world. Since I’m not a big soccer fan, I don’t have that pull toward the World Cup, but I figure it’s about the same.
Then the NCAA basketball season kicks into full conference mode, as teams jostle for a berth in the NCAA tournament. And then in mid-March, it’s March Madness as teams vie for a national championship, both on the men’s and women’s side.
For me, the period ends with the playing of the Master’s golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia. Having been to Augusta National and watched part of it firsthand, it’s the ultimate prize in a game I love. There’s also the amazing beauty of the flowers as they bloom in middle Georgia so much earlier than they do for me here in the Midwest.
At the same time, we move towards spring with the idea of warming weather, greener grass, no snow, and trees budding with their soon-to-be summer foliage. And normally around the end of this timeframe is, to me in my own personal way, the celebration of the most important holiday of the year: Easter.
Because of the hustle and bustle of the world, I sometimes forget how much I enjoy these three months. But every year, as I go through them, I’m reminded of my affinity for the late season of winter moving into spring.
