Character

"Character," the last of our three "C's" is the uniting force for all three. It's the gravity in the molecular equation. Courage and commitment without the inner conviction to use them for good and in a noble, honorable way are meaningless...in fact, they can be a nuisance! Recognizing the semantic problem that a person can have bad character, the trait I speak of here is synonymous with honor.

In the movie "Rob Roy," the Robin Hoodesque legend of the Scottish Highlands, Rob tells his sons that honor is "a gift a man gives himself." This is the takeaway that I hope all our runners receive when they exercise good character in practice and especially in our meets. When they don the marigold yellow tee-shirts with the "flaming pizza man" logo, I want everyone out there to know that win or lose...first or last place, this is a competitor who wishes the best for him or herself, their school and all the runners that have shown the courage to toe the starting line.

We have a proud tradition at Christ the King...a reputation for being the "good guys." "Reputation is made in a moment," I have heard it said, "character takes a lifetime." I think it is a testament to our school and its faculty, our wonderful parents and these gosh-darned good kids that we've earned the repuation of being honorable opponents. As a society, we have lost in large measure, what it really means to be a good sportsman. You can't watch a sporting event anymore without some wiff of performance enhancing drugs, cheating, illegal videotaping and on and on. The "win at any cost" mentality permeates the NFL, NHL, NBA, NCAA and just about every other L or A you can throw out there. The scandals have permeated such noble venues as the Tour de France and the Olympics. Now don't get me wrong...I HATE losing! But I do not subscribe to the "at any cost" part of winning. Perhaps it's a nod to my dysfunctional sports background (years of 2-9 seasons at Vanderbilt!) that I DO subscribe to Grantland Rice 's (VU Class of 1901 ) philosophy:

"For when the One Great Scorer comes

To write against your name,

He marks - not that you won or lost -

But how you played the Game."

Maybe we are swimming against a rip tide that has become the modern arena, but for at least four Sundays every fall in Nashville, on the cross-country course at the Dominican Campus, we can make a difference when we show our appreciation for the beauty of fierce competition but noble character. Our runners with courage, commitment and character show the best of us. Honor them.