Tuesday, February 11, 2014

A Lesson from Figure Skating

"as workers together"
2 Corinthians 6:1

Okay, I'm well into my Olympics TV watching.  And when I'm not watching, I'm recording, and any time there's not something live on TV, I'm watching something I recorded.  It's nonstop. 

{I'm kidding.  
I have things to do and kids to teach and dinners to make, etc.  
But I'm definitely watching more TV than usual...}

Today I'm celebrating pairs figure skating.  How delightful is this sport to watch?  Of course it doesn't hurt that they are accompanied by music, but it is just so pleasant and fascinating and inspiring, all at the same time. 

And I think what I'm appreciating most is the combination of beauty and strength.  These are athletes who are artists.  They leap and twirl amazingly and gracefully,  and most of the time, land flawlessly on that skinny steel blade.  And if the individual leaping isn't remarkable enough, I'm finding myself newly astounded at the fact that these men are throwing their partners into the air!  Lifting another human being, and tossing them!  And these lovely women glide elegantly through the air, land, and then do it all again.

Now first of all, I love the idea that anything done well can be beautiful and artistic.  Even something like leaping and landing... throwing and being thrown.  Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote in one of her books about watching the preparation for the railroad, and being fascinated by the graders moving smoothly and rhythmically as they did their work.  It was men and horses and machines, but it was also art, in its way. 

And the second thing I'm loving about pairs figure skating, is the synchronicity.  These two people who have worked and trained for so long that they are in wonderful sync with each other, and it doubles my amazement!  It's an inspiration for anyone in a marriage, or any sort of partnership that calls for cooperation.

Teamwork is admirable... strength is lyrical... hard work is beautiful.

~ "Honor and majesty are before Him;
      Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary" ~
Psalm 96:6
~

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