The need for sports and games

What are the thoughts you have when you think about a sport? Do you think about the rules of the game? Or the greatest players and teams that have ever played that sport? Or how good you were when you played the game itself back in the day? 

There are so many sports to choose from, and being a huge fan of a singular sport can take you on a trip down numerous alleys that you would have never imagined. You discover something new every day, although it can be a bit overwhelming at first, considering the amount of knowledge that you're trying to gain. However, once you're in the loop, nothing can actually stop you from diving deep into the rabbit hole of teams, players, leagues, fans and the history of the sport. 

Doesn't this picture entice you to play again?

In the current age of social media recommendations bombarding your phones and tablets, you do not even need to bother much about following up on your favourite sport as the search engines do the job for you. You wake up in the morning, pick up your phone, and the first news item shown on your Google Feed is the result of your favourite team's match result from late last night. You can never be short of information if you have an internet connection 24x7, which is pretty much the case for everyone in urban areas.

Not many people actually follow their favourite sport on a regular basis. Some of them may be called "plastic fans." But what is the point of all this? Why does a person engage in entities like sporting teams and players that are far beyond their sense of control?

There is a deep lying connection between what your personality is and what kind of a team you support. Let's not dwell on that though. More importantly the fact that your passion is forever bound to support that one team which you connect instantly with for the first time you start exploring the sport, can be associated with what everyone calls love. In-fact the relationship of sports fans with their favourite is just like a love-hate relationship. There are always times when you fall in love with the way your team performs, and then fall out of it the instant they start performing abysmally on a given day.

You can also say the same for people particularly in long term relationships. No one can actually be happy forever with their significant others, but there are moments which drastically strengthen the relationship over time.

The competitive nature of sports and games in general, can bring out the best and worst in people. The drive to potentially have the bragging rights over your peers is definitely what most guys aim for when competing over a friendly match. It's all in good taste though. More importantly the sense of togetherness that a group can achieve by playing every day, or every weekend, is priceless in my opinion. To be clear, I am not talking about the sport meet-ups that your company or institution organises just for the sake of employee satisfaction. A group of people need to decide and co-ordinate among themselves to dedicate an amount of time to play a sport for their soul.

There are other aspects of professional sports, like e-sports where players and teams spend countless hours trying to perfect their aiming skills for first-person shooters, or their team co-ordination to suit their style of play. Most people treat e-sports as a thing that nerds would generally be interested in, and then not have the respect for it that it deserves. That's because most of them haven't tried their hands on it for a longer duration. But the world of competitive computer games is fascinating, and I can say that because I do realise the type of emotions it can bring out of you when you know how to play.

Nevertheless, the kind of moments you live while enjoying a sport are indescribable, and you won't be encountering them while you sit away for the whole day in front of your desktops and laptops. You need to get out there and make an effort for it, just like you make an effort for completing an assignment, or studying for an exam, or securing a job. 

The majority of the working-class community are tired of their day jobs by the end of the week, thus aiming to relax and chill with their family and friends. They may even try to get out of their comfort zone and run some errands over the weekend. All this stems from the idea of 'all work no play'. I see some of my friends who work tirelessly in trying to earn a living or complete their degree coursework, but never even attempt to follow a sport, or even play one. I am not saying it is a crime not to follow a sport. It is just what matters to me more than anything else.

Folks should at least try to make an effort for one outdoor game over the weekend. It could be anything like football, basketball, badminton, tennis, or even riding a bicycle with their buddies if you are not able to gather the required equipment for the games mentioned formerly. However, by effort I also mean a whole hearted approach to the way the game is meant to be played.

Make it competitive, not casual.

That's the only mantra to exhaust yourselves in trying to one up your friends.

Of course, there may be a rush of blood and you may begin trying to reason out the unreasonable, but at the end of it all you realise that it was just a game. A simple game with your friends who you have known since quite a while now. Trust me, it can give you a feeling of satisfaction and belief, that you would want to try again the next time around and get the better of them.

Bicycles are the best to unwind

The bigger picture through all this is trying to maintain a relationship, and that relationship is with 'sports'. It may not be perfect, but you can work it out through momentarily engaging yourself in them. Follow a team, or play with your mates, it's up to you.

Also, think about the next time you say "no" to one of your friends when they call you over for a casual game of any sport of their liking, be it an outdoor game or a collaborative computer game. You are missing out on an opportunity to make memories that can last, not a lifetime of course, but still for quite a while.