"Wear your recovery like a loose-fitting garment." That's a saying from Alcoholics Anonymous and it's a good one. There isn't much in life that doesn't benefit from being worn like a loose-fitting garment, and the more important the matter, the looser it should be worn.
I did not see Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles bow down to Rebeca Andrade on the podium when it happened, but when I heard about it, and saw the replay, I, like so many others, was deeply moved. I could feel the warmth and open-heartedness, the dignity it added to what was already a highly dignified situation. Simone and Jordan had worn the Olympics like a loose-fitting garment, giving it up to the woman who had bested them, and with one simple act, turning her from competitor to comrade. Taken in the context of our current cultural climate (not to mention the political atmosphere, globally), it was a revolutionary act.
Nike, the great sneaker and apparel Goliath has changed their catch phrase from "Just Do It," a somewhat Buddhist and result-free slogan, to "Winning Isn't for Everyone," an elitist, if not downright Ayn Randish call to greatness. It's true. Winning isn't for everyone. But you know what is? Connection, humility, generosity, grace. That's for all of us, whether we finish first or fiftieth. The honor is not in victory, the honor is in honor, and I am not surprised that “the bow” went viral, for deep inside, we are all longing to lay down our sword and shield, and be liberated from the tyranny of self.
And that's what they did, those two gifted (and in that moment, divinely imbued) women. They laid down their sword and shield, and together, all three were released from the limits of gold, silver and bronze. It was an act of abundance. It said, there’s enough love, enough applause, enough praise for all. Your greatness doesn’t diminish us, it increases us. They know how much work, discipline, sacrifice, and general bad-assness it takes to perform like that when it matters most, and a fellow black woman, from the favelas of São Paulo. How right on that Jordan Chiles would ask Simone “should we bow to her?” and turn any whiff of defeat or disappointment into reverence and sisterhood.
This is the good stuff. Real alchemy happening before our eyes. I don’t think they had any idea their gesture would have such a huge effect, but with that impulse, they gave us (or at least me) the most memorable moment of this Olympics-- Three black queens, not just dominating a traditionally white, European sport, but showing solidarity and in some small way healing our collective isolation.
And a special shout out to Simone Biles. The GOAT. The Beyoncé of the balance beam. She arrives on the scene in 2016, a young, black prodigy, ready to do for gymnastics what Serena Williams did for tennis. She goes to Rio and blows everyone’s mind. Now it’s on to Tokyo to do it again, but instead, she ends up confronting her demons in front of the entire world. She talks openly about her struggles, comes back three years later, and wins gold again, proving her greatness and gaining even more of our awe and admiration. That alone is enough for a good Greek myth, but she isn’t done, and it is by NOT being the best that she makes her greatest impact in Paris. She even throws a little shade on Trump while she’s at it. What a woman!
The Olympics are great and great to watch. They are a proper vehicle for nationalist pride, which, on the whole, is a complete and total disaster. Nationalism is responsible for untold amounts of death, xenophobia, violence, racism, and the rest of the fear-based arts. That arbitrary or even war-won lines in the ground can separate us so completely is a collective agony. What those three women did on that podium was a balm to that agony, and though it may be forgotten quickly, for a moment it blurred those borders and made us all more human.
Everything now is quantified by “likes,” “stars,” “top-ten lists,” etc. These are base, short-hand ways to value and devalue the complex experience of being human. They are used to keep score in a scoreboard driven world, and they (intentionally) drive consumerism, and (unintentionally) bring misery. As I said earlier, the biggest sports equipment company there is wants to know if we’ve got what it takes to win. But what I will remember from the Women’s Olympics Gymnastics is not how the great Rebeca Andrade won, but how the greatest to ever do it lost, and in doing so, reminded us where the gold is.
"There isn't much in life that doesn't benefit from being worn like a loose-fitting garment," is perhaps one of the most philosophical and useful ideas that one could work with in this world. Just think about it for a moment: it's useful for those who are overweight, for those who are pregnant, for those who are caught up in religious or political ideologies - and most importantly, for lovers who are in the middle of a flaring row with their partners. All one has to do is jump out of the straightjacket of one position into something a bit looser and less irritating, and all the conflicts and problems can be resolved quite easily - with everybody looking better (of course) in their cooler clothes. Tommy is some philosopher! He knows the Tao.
Beautiful… oh, and this. I live on the Canadian border, so watching the Olympics as broadcast by the CBC is quite different. They are not as obsessed with winning. Now if we could just apply that to the NFL, wouldn’t that be nice!