When the Fame Fades

I'll admit it--I'm never going to be famous. As such, I cannot relate to what famous people go through, especially as they move on from their pedestals. I would think this is particularly hard for athletes, compared to entertainers or politicians, in that they are young when their careers are over. It's hard to bow out gracefully and probably even more difficult to live 40 years of your life not doing the ONE thing you were awesome at for the first 30 years.

Two things bring this to mind. First is the dance going on between Brett Favre and the Packers and whether he is going to un-retire. Favre clearly can't give football up. I'm guessing that this goes for any athlete who retires while still in relatively good health. When he announced that he was quitting, Favre said that playing on Sunday's wasn't a problem, but all the preparation was killing him. Fair enough. As training camp gets closer and he starts missing the camaraderie of the locker room, etc, the practice grass starts getting a bit greener. And he's probably thinking that last year's 12-4 team has a shot at the Super Bowl (forgetting that it was his poor play that cost them the game against the Giants).

Favre is losing sight of the fact that his skills are diminishing and the glory years are gone. I don't think he's doing all of this for one more round of adoration--he's had enough of that for several lifetimes. And I don't think he's being intentionally selfish, though his actions are making if tougher for the team to move on with their new quarterback. He just wasn't ready to stop doing something he loves cold turkey. I'm thinking it will be a year to two before he's mentally retired.

The second, and probably sadder story is that of Tommie Smith and John Carlos, the sprinters who protested the treatment of African-Americans at the 1968 Summer Olympics. These two men were a spark that forced us to to look at how African-Americans and African-American athletes were treated in this country. They now bicker like two old men over the details of the race and the event, losing sight of their contribution to our country. Sure, they have books to sell, but the energy they spend being so divisive towards each other takes away from their message of unity in 1968. The original message should have kept them on their pedestals for the rest of their lives.