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20 RECRE8-NC •
Summer 2016
THE SHORT SIDE
S
o, I was watching football this past
winter. The game was close and the
home team was driving at the end
of the game looking for the go ahead
touchdown. You could say it was a pressure
packed situation. And then it happened after a
nice thirty yard reception down to the fifteen
yard line. A yellow flag on the field.
“Holding. Number 67. Offense. That will be fifteen yards from
the spot of the foul. Repeat third down.” The home team went from
first and ten from the fifteen yard line to third and twenty-seven from
their own thirty eight yard line. Two plays later, the game was over.
(And no, it wasn’t a Wolfpack game because we don’t make penalties,
and no, it wasn’t a UNC game because everybody knows that the
referees don’t throw flags on the Tarheels.)
Now, here is what I noticed. We have all seen it a thousand times
if you watch football. The referee called the offensive lineman out for
the penalty. The camera focused right on the guy. Heck, they actually
followed him back to the huddle with one of those overhanging
cameras. You could tell he was looking at the stadium scoreboard for
the replay and then he just kind of shook his head. The 70,000 people
in attendance and the millions watching on television all knew he was
at fault. Everybody knew he had cost his team a crucial first down and
a chance to win the game. Then, one of his teammates slapped him on
the shoulder pads and he went back to the huddle for the next play. He
didn’t cry about it. He didn’t call his coach. He didn’t point fingers. He
patted himself on the chest as if to say “my bad” and got back to work.
This example and all the football I watch got me to thinking.
What if real life was like a football game? Could we handle it?
For example, a high school kid is absolutely bombing the
chemistry exam and the teacher all of a sudden throws a yellow
flag and announces to the class. “We’ve got lack of preparation and
excessive sleep last night on Jordan. That will be a 42 on the exam
and a 67 average for the semester. Repeat this class.”
I’m betting Jordan either turns his desk over or runs out of the
class. And I’m betting Jordan’s parents are at the school by the end of
the day even if the teacher was 100 percent right.
What if two co-workers are getting a little too friendly with each
other at work and everybody knows it, but nobody wants to bring it to
the boss’s attention about how it is affecting the work environment?
Wouldn’t it be great if somebody from Personnel just walked into the
staff meeting, threw a yellow flag into the air, and announced, “We’ve
got excessive touching. Peggy and John. That will be two weeks
suspension without pay. Repeat staff orientation course.”
IF WE THREW PENALTY FLAGS IN
OUR HOUSE,
I’D LEAD THE LEAGUE
By David Lee, Director, Wilson Parks & Recreation