I am sure there are times when we all need to feel perfect in our lives. I know I do. The proof of society's expectation to be perfect was pointed out once again. This time it was displayed in this past weekend's NFL NFC Championship game. The game was between the Seattle Seahawks and the Green Bay Packers. Now, don't get me wrong here, being a Minnesota Vikings fan, I was overjoyed to see the Green Bay Packers FINALLY get a defeat handed to them in the fashion they did. With five minutes left to go in that game, Green Bay was ahead by a score of 19-7 and I was bitter. I was dreading going to work the next day and have to hear for the next two weeks about how Green Bay was going to yet another Super Bowl and how the team was the greatest thing since the invention of sliced bread. I was also dreading having to listen to how everyone should wanna make love to Aaron Rodgers just like every play-by-play commentator wants to when they are broadcasting one of his games.
Getting back to my original point of this post, what was floating around the media, and perhaps the social networking universe immediately following the game, was that the Green Bay Packers had lost the chance to go to the Super Bowl because of one of the players not coming up with onside kick recovery late in the game. This drives me nuts! When to we stop and realize that these types of accusations are the type that destroys lives....literally. A couple of years ago, there was an NFL referee who was a replacement referee while the regulars were on strike. So, it was Monday Night Football on ESPN and at the end of the game, ironically the Seattle Seahawks versus Green Bay Packers AGAIN, there was a hail mary pass. This play was referred to as Fail Mary because after "the catch" one referee signaled touchdown and the other referee signaled no catch. This call changed the outcome of the game and gave the Green Bay Packers a loss. Fast forward two years to the present day and this referee is now reportedly suffering severe depression, can't sleep, and suffers PTSD from this incident. I am a big sports fan and feel all the emotions of the excitement of sports, but why does it come to the point of someone's life being wrecked. I mean life went on. The regular refs came back and the season went on as scheduled. Now, that game happened over two years ago, and everyone is ok, except that poor ref that went through traumatic experiences immediately following that one call on the field.
This is not the only case of this happening. The famous Steve Bartman incident at Wrigley Field over a decade ago was another case of another man's life being forever wrecked because of a reaction from an incident happening at a sporting event. Steve Bartman was like every other sports fan wanting a game used souvenior by trying to catch a foul ball. Based on where he was sitting and it being the playoffs, it appears he would've paid a pretty penny for the ticket where his seat was located. When Steve Bartman went to catch that foul ball, he was unaware that it was still a ball that could've been caught for the out. As soon as he caught the ball instead of the approaching outfielder, the crowd went nuts on this guy. They didn't get physical with him, but almost immediately security had to escort him out of the arena for his own safety. It didn't stop after he left Wrigley. The next morning his picture and name were on the front of the Chicago area newspapers. In the end, again for his own safety, this guy had to end up moving from where he lived. I am not sure, but I am guessing this also meant he either had to leave his job or even lost his job. And for what? Being a dedicated Chicago Cubs sports fan. I don't get it.
This is two of many incidents where this type of thing happens and I don't know why society has developed such an expectation of perfection. When I work with students at my job, my co-workers and I (well, most of them) do not expectation perfection. There is a few reasons for this. The first being that being perfect carries a very high level of pressure that quite honestly just isn't fair to put on anyone. The second being that everyone makes mistakes and we should be learning from them so we don't make the same mistake again. Finally, the third one being the fact it's ok to make a mistake, it's human nature. Even programmed machinery that is supposed to be flawless makes mistakes and has errors and we accept them. I would never expect perfection from any student I work with and I do not think it is right that society does the same thing to people who are just trying to do their job and make a living for a simple life.
#rememberdifferentperspectives
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