As all of my loyal readers know, attending an Olympics had long been a dream of mine for a variety of personal, mostly sentimental reasons. My week with Mari at London2012 (I can't believe it has already been nearly six years) was fittingly overwhelming.
I especially remember the local Londoner, an older gentleman, who asked if he could take our photo. Mari and I have long been proponents of the "camera exchange" with fellow tourists, but we were thrilled to have our photo taken by a London2012 volunteer who was proud to represent his home town and share his local knowledge, friendly attitude, and camera skills with the multitudes of out-of-towners who had descended upon his beloved London.
He even lent us his foam finger (which all the volunteers were using to help lead our way) for a most memorable souvenir photo.
If you watched my home video clip (link reposted below) from the women's volleyball final at London's Earls Court on the final evening of competition (London, episode 18), you undoubtedly noticed how emotional I was. (Just ask Mari, I was like that the entire week.) Surrounded by thousands of people at all times, we traversed one of our favorite cities in search of stadiums and venues that had been constructed to bring diverse peoples together and to unite them for a common goal... supporting and rooting for the "home team," of course, wherever and whoever that "home" may have been on any given day.
My 2012 Olympics journey forever altered my spectator perspective, even as I settle in comfortably at home to spectate the Olympic games. This week's celebrations and historically uplifting opening ceremony from PyeongChang encouraged me to celebrate the unifying power of the Olympic games this blog week.
What a wonderful change it is to pause to reflect
on the joyful noise of celebration!
I know I'm an idealist (and a romantic), but powerful images of unity broadcast worldwide from the technologically magical and humbly historical opening ceremony are forever fixed in my memories. Even that enigmatic smile of North Korean representative Kim Yo-jong has become a symbol of international diplomacy at its (most manipulative) best.
Choose your own symbol of peace and unity and celebratory glee from the past few days and savor that as you reflect from your own little corner of our pale blue dot...
Although we did not journey to South Korea (it's on a future list, I assure you) for the triumphant festivities and to snap our own amateur photos, I wanted to offer you links to articles and color photos from NBC's informative and carefully curated Olympics site.
The bright red uniforms and even brighter smiles ecstatically enrobing the multitudes of North Korean cheerleaders at the unified Korea team's opening women's hockey game.
nbcnews.com/storyline/winter-olympics-2018/unified-korean-women-s-ice-hockey-team-debuts-olympics-heartfelt-n846636
17-year-old Red Gerard's last-minute third-run gold medal aerodynamics at the men's snowboarding slopestyle finals.
nbcolympics.com/news/snowboarder-red-gerard-wins-first-us-gold-medal-2018-winter-olympics
South Korea's Lim Hyo-jun's dramatic gold medal win (the first for South Korea at these Olympics) in the men's 1,500 short-track speedskating final.
nbcolympics.com/news/olympic-recap-mens-1500-womens-3000m-relay
Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir's dramatically poetic short ice dance that helped put Team Canada atop the team skating event going into Monday's finals.
nbcolympics.com/news/new-tessa-virtue-and-scott-moir
Despite their clumsy appellation, even the "Olympic athletes from Russia" (OAR) stand as a symbol of unity, competing together as a team, representing physically-fit athletes devoted to their sport.
nbcolympics.com/news/russian-olympians-adapt-life-neutral-uniform
If nothing else, the boldly exuberant entrance into Olympic Stadium of Team Tonga (you know who I'm talking about even if you don't remember the name Pita Taufatofua) during the opening ceremony should motivate you to watch and root for your favorite team or athlete, even if they are not yet your favorite.
nbcolympics.com/news/shirtless-tongan-back-pyeongchang-and-all-oiled-once-again
Although I will likely still be gleefully glued to Olympics coverage on my TV and laptop, I will return next week with more good times and fleamarketed goodies from SoCal.
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