Sport is a Fantasy

Sport is one of life's most wonderful fantasies
And it's time to stop pretending otherwise
That the physical pursuit of arbitrary rules
Is nothing more than fantastic lies.

Fantasies make you believe foolish tales
Of course the world is not about to end
Yet you believe in the smallest heroes
And invest in the great game of pretend

What the best fantasies do
Is teach you things about who you are
That you can be the one to step up
Even if the situation is bizarre

Here then, is a toast to Sport
The most fantastic author of all
Who makes us hold our breath
As we watch the flight of a ball

Sport makes us think it really matters
If we really can jump 1cm higher than the rest
Whether we can keep our toes inside the line
Or wield a bat with great finesse

More than society will often allow
We ride the great emotions
We'll yell and scream and dance and shout
We follow with devotion

Unless, of course, we step into the story
And insert ourselves into the page
Step a foot upon the pitch
Enclosed within the chalky cage

This is when we feel the most
And when we learn the most as well
How much do we really want this?
Are we prepared to go through hell?

To get up early, train til late
We learn the limit of our power
We train for days, for weeks and more
To perform for just an hour

We endure injury and physio
We endure the wind and rain
We buy into this awesome tale
We put up with the pain

Just so we can find a happy ending
To the current chapter, at least
It requires our inner hero
But also our inner beast

Sport has its ups, sport has it's down
It can be tough and cold
It tells the tale of champions
And the sadness of growing old

You must take it all Sport has to offer,
To see how the story plays
Yes, Sport is but a fantasy
And I mean that in the best of ways