Spirited Save
Generosity of spirit allows our relationships to deepen and our collaborations to flourish...it is also about being merciful, not only to others, but to ourselves.
-The Miracle Collectors
September 15, 2021
With school back in session, September is also a month where sports come to the fore. Baseball playoffs, football, college rivalries, and kids' soccer. It feels like a miracle to have these events to look forward to once again! Joan looks at another covid-related sport - TV watching, and shares her thoughts about the popularity of one surprising sports-related gem.
Like most of us, I, too, have been watching more TV than ever during COVID. It seems we all love sharing the shows we've enjoyed and when one show that I wasn't familiar with kept coming up, I decided to pay attention and see what the excitement was all about. I mean how could an English soccer team with an American football coach have such a universal appeal?
I didn't have to watch Ted Lasso for long before I had my answer: generosity of spirit. Frankly, I was surprised, but generosity of spirit is something I can get my arms around; it's reassuring in this time of global turmoil. Generosity of spirit is what allows us to listen, to respect others, to know that even though sometimes we have a hard call to make and others may be disappointed, it can be done with grace, with understanding, and with dignity. Generosity of spirit is our secret sauce, our "1 thing" that makes collaborations work whether in friendship, a romantic relationship, or a business interaction.
In the final episode of season one, Ted highlights a fundamental component of generosity of spirit: forgiveness. Ted's forgiveness is given freely; it is not obsequious or vindictive, but straight up here's-a-hug forgiveness. We see Ted's strength when he says I see you and I forgive you anyway. Apology accepted; now let's move on together in partnership. We also see the conundrum faced by the team owner, Rebecca, who has instigated team crises and damaging innuendo as she faces her own demons and comes clean. Even after rationalizing that no one will ever know, she chooses to admit what she has done. We know it is sometimes hard to be truthful, and yet owning the truth is the first step in coming to love and forgive oneself.
What's so interesting is not that I see this generosity of spirit and appreciate the way it's portrayed, after all, I've spent the last twenty years of my writing career trying to practice it, but rather, how the show has gripped so many others. I believe that in some way we are all looking for compassion, for goodness, for survival of the best in the human spirit. This doesn't mean all of our dreams come true or that life doesn't have its share of disappointments and challenges along the way, but it gives us hope that in spite of the difficulties, we can retain our own compass, our own individuality, and work on expanding our own generosity of spirit.
Maybe we can't all get back to playing in the premier league - but maybe playing a league of our own is miracle enough. (Joan)