If you had asked me if I believed in fate leading up to yesterday's FIFA Women's championship game or if I was a sport's fan with superstitions of any sort, I would have just laughed and my answer would have been:..."no, are you kidding me!?!" But something was stirred up inside of me this time around during this year's World Cup. Yesterday's loss of our Womens National Team [USA] to Japan certainly made me more of a believer in fate than not. It was just so weird or perhaps even uncanny how Team USA had so many things goes against them in their loss. As a fanatic and long-time follower of this team, I refuse to accept that Team USA missed so many chances at getting goals especially at the beginning of this game because they did not play well or appeared scared. They were missing their shots like the goal post (mainly the cross bar) was playing against our Team USA and was to be Team Japan's 12th man, per se, on this day!!!
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Maybe it is my age as I am getting up there in years and am seeing things in different ways that I am more open to believe in the power of fate. Maybe I am more apt to believe that fate does exist as I see more and more how life gives and takes and my cynicism towards fate has changed. All I know is that there has to be an explanation for those ups and downs in life and though I still strongly believe in the "laws of probability" more than anything else and allow my spirituality to guide me more so than any religion, I am still open to believing in other things such as fate. It is weird to describe or to fathom what occurred in yesterday's FIFA W.C. game so I won't try to justify my feelings. Like I said in this morning's FB status update: 'It is what it is!'As for superstitious I did find myself also becoming a bit superstitious during this World Cup as well. That was truly a mind-boggling experience for yours truly. I wondered where the hell that came from because I am usually not superstitious at all - not by any means especially not where sports is concerned. I did not want to ruin things for my precious team as if my actions could hinder their play or stir up trouble with the Karma G-ds; utterly ridiculous I know, but again, it is what it is! I did not post an update at all until this a.m. My reason for not posting post-game was based more on my heart break than anything else. This national Team [USA] was too good to lose like it did; it was being referred to as the best team the U.S. has ever sent to any World Cup tourney - for sure the most fit. Team USA was not supposed to lose - not this year, not like this and certainly not to Japan; a team whose victories against the U.S. had long eluded them. Again, it was what it was and Japan came out on top in the end with pk's being Team USA's nemesis instead of their friend like they were during that other W.C. game versus Team Brazil.
Fate was to beat our "Hope" on this day as well. That has double meaning because as Team USA struggled in vain to score goals that should have crossed the opponents goal line but instead strayed right or left - or were spit back with a loud thump by the goal post, fate ousted hope and even our own goalie, Hope Solo, seemed to have struggled. Perhaps Hope should have received more defensive help from her team-mates inside the box, but that was also another area in which our team struggled and thus left Hope...well, 'solo'. Goals which Team USA usually makes went awry all day, and it seems fate was saying to our players: "not so fast, ladies"! It was weird. Especially playing against us seemed to be the cross bar; it seemed especially angry at our Wambach and it was to deny her her usual ability to score several times on this day. Yep, the post, as funny or stupid as it sounds, was the 12th man to Team Japan today. Fate had decided that Japan was to come out the victor from today's championship game. I guess it was trying to make up for all the disasters it had spewed on Japan in the form of earth quakes, tsunamies, and nuclear spillage(s). Who knows.
All I know is that I do congratulate Team Japan for their victory. For the way they kept coming back with their much-needed equalizers when they most needed them to ensure they did not lose. As things wound down and it came down to pk's, it was just not to be Team USA's year to win the World Cup. Our players seemed nervous and their usual swagger was missing as one-by-one Team USA took their turn at the pk's only to miss the first three. Team Japan was not poised that much better, but they had something on their minds and it showed in their eyes that they were ready to win this game. One could read it all right, but the only thing that was not readily available to fans of the U.S. and certainly not to our Hope Solo was in being able to read where their pk's would be kicked. Solo was beaten in that area. She blocked one of their pk's, almost got another one which she managed to touch, but could just not hold onto before it crossed the line. Our players [U.S.] just looked scared more than nervous. The minute Boxx missed her goal, it seemed the life of Team USA was knocked out and the rest of our players did not want to be in that position (pk's) except for Wambach who never wavered and walked up to the net with just enough confidence to get her pk, but apparently not enough to incite the remaining U.S. players to get the ones they needed for sudden death.
Team Japan won this game out-right and deserves to finally have a World Cup championship. Kudos to Team Japan for a good game!!! For the way they played a good, sound and respectful game and for showing the world how real Champions react (hope Team Brazil watched and will learn a thing or two in that area). Kudos to Japan in how they carried themselves thru victory without the need for conceitedness, and for not allowing cocky or egotistical to define the way they celebrated their win. Especially congrats to Team Japan for not allowing anything negative to impede the way they would be viewed to the world which was watching them in record numbers. They showed up with class and won with class and went home with class. AWESOME!!!
FIFA ROCKS!!!
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