Opportunities abound as Easter approaches

This is an exciting time of year. Though it has felt spring-like since February, spring will hit its stride as we head into April.

All the great aspects of the season will be on display for us. Along with nature’s beauty, we will have lots of options when it comes to filling our time. This is primarily because of the longer days of sunlight, but not everything is tied to that.

However, as April gets started, Christians around the world will have the chance to take part in that religion’s most important holiday. Easter is just around the corner on April 8.

The importance of this holiday cannot be overstated. The holiday commemorates the Resurrection of Jesus Christ following His crucifixion. Simply put, Christians believe this is the most important event in world history.

All aspects of the religion point back to this event. Without it, the religion would collapse like a house of cards. The religion would be just another false faith, and the followers of Jesus would be wasting their time.

While those sound like harsh statements, it is the truth. If Jesus had not been resurrected, He would not have fulfilled what he told His disciples. Jesus told them this would happen, and if it had not, He would have been just another false prophet. Therefore, Christianity without the Resurrection would be like ice cream without the ice or the cream.

Currently, the holiday is a little over a week away. At this point, there has been little build up to it. There have been some observances, but compared to Christmas, the lack of anticipation for Easter is noticeable.

That is not meant as a knock at Christmas. Recognizing the birth of Jesus is very important, but our society has taken the holiday and trivialized it to the point that it is hardly recognizable. The spiritual aspects of it have been ground into a fine powder by many.

This has not happened to Easter, and perhaps this is why the build up to it is not the same. Businesses have not developed a way to make billions of dollars off it so it has been left alone to a certain degree.

Still, the holiday deserves more attention than it receives. Because of this, Christians have a tremendous opportunity. Simply by taking the time to take part in the various commemorations in the coming week, they can shine a bright and positive light on why these events are observed.

Sunday is considered ‘Palm Sunday’ by many. This commemorates Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem when palm branches were strewn before Him. Of course, many of the people who cheered Him that day were likely among the ones who cried for His crucifixion only days later. This is a vivid example of human nature, and how people can turn on others in an instant. In this case, many who viewed Jesus as someone who could liberate Jerusalem from Roman rule turned against Him when the winds of change blew. However, that is a story for another time.

Just taking the time to ponder the circumstances of ‘Palm Sunday’ or ‘The Last Supper’ (later in the week) can cause Easter to have a more meaningful impact for you personally. It really does not take that much effort. We have the world at our fingertips on-line. How difficult is it to at least ‘google’ these events and read about them?

Like most things in life, the next week or so is what we make of it. This time can be just another week for all of us. Or it can be a time when we stop and consider this amazing part of history.

Let’s make a good decision.

My picks for the Final Four (revisited)

Now that we know what teams will be in the Final Four, it is time to compare them to the teams I originally picked back on March 13. Back then, I picked Kentucky, Ohio State, Missouri and Kansas. Despite all the bracket-busting upsets, I think I did well.

Three of my picks made the Final Four (Kentucky, Ohio State and Kansas). Missouri's upset back in the second round destroyed that bracket for me, but I did pretty well every place else. So, if somebody followed my picks and bet their life savings on it, they are sitting pretty right now. If a person did not listen to me...well, maybe they will listen next time. By the way, I do not advocate gambling. I only advocate listening to me when I make picks.

I like Kentucky to win the title, but their semi-final game against Louisville should be exciting.

Backing Pat Summitt

As the basketball season winds down, there has been much speculation about whether this will be Pat Summitt’s last season as head coach of the Tennessee Lady Vols basketball team.

A couple of weeks ago, some members of the media made it sound like a foregone conclusion that she would be stepping down. Summitt recently said that she has not given it much thought, and her immediate goal was to get her team ready to compete for another national championship.

Of course, the reason for this speculation is her health. Prior to the start of the season, she revealed she has been diagnosed with early onset dementia, Alzheimer’s type. Since then, her approach to coaching the team has shifted with her assistant coaches taking additional responsibilities.

Still, coaching a high-level program like Tennessee’s is extremely stressful even if responsibilities get shared more. Because of this, there has been great concern about its impact on her condition. Summitt’s interaction with the media has been greatly reduced so it is difficult to get a close look at her on a day-to-day basis.

The season itself has been something of a rollercoaster. After starting strong, her team wavered and was, at times, frustratingly inconsistent. The team uncharacteristically lost eight games during the regular season before getting it together and winning the Southeastern Conference tournament.

This inconsistency led many to speculate whether this new approach was good for the program. What it really demonstrated was just how high Summitt has set the level of excellence.

As I write this, the team is 26-8, which is a record that many programs would love to have. Despite the inconsistency of the regular season, the team played good enough to earn a number two seed in the NCAA tournament. Considering the circumstances, this should be described as remarkable. However, when a coach wins eight national championships, the expectations of everybody become almost unreasonable and any dip is interpreted as decay.

While there is a lot of interest in this situation, Summitt should be the one who gets to call her shot regarding if or when she will step down. The decision should not come from the media or the fans or the university administration. She has contributed too much to the University of Tennessee for this decision to be treated any other way.

Despite the ups and downs of the school (both athletically and academically), Summitt has been a rock. She has been a constant source of integrity. She has been loyal almost to a fault and has influenced a generation of young people (both female and male) in important ways.

When it comes to athletics, people like her do not come along every day. In an age where we see new scandals constantly, she has run a program above reproach. Schools like Ohio State, Miami, and USC would kill for a coach who could bring such integrity to their schools.

She has single-handedly built her program out of the dirt. Many people can coach, but not many can be creators in the way she has been. She has been a visionary not only in developing her program at Tennessee but for women’s sports in general.

‘Legend’ is an overused word, but it fits here. She is that. As a graduate from Tennessee and a fan of her program, my primary concern is for her health. For all she has accomplished, I would hate to watch her take any unnecessary risks.

She has earned the right to go out on her terms. However, I hope those around her are counseling her in a straightforward and unflinching way.

There is no other way when dealing with this situation.