A Story of Success!

This white man sits and dreams, wondering if it is cosmologically possible for the stars to set in such a perfect alignment that would see his sporting utopia realised in 2008! The Hawks are the AFL champions and this weekend the mighty Melbourne Storm play off for back-to-back NRL titles. The Hawthorn Football Club achieved what many considered a far-fetched pipe-dream by beating the seemingly indominable Geelong Cats last Saturday in the 2008 AFL Grand Final. It was a victory full of grit, determination and hunger for the main prize. A win against the odds and a fitting reward for one of Glenferries favourite sons, Shane Crawford.

Crawford debuted for the Hawks in 1992, the year following their premiership success in 1991. At the time he must have thought he was going to board a gravy-train of success, playing in a champion team with more premiership glory an apparent fait accomplie. Little did Shane Crawford know that his debut would coincide with a 17 year drought of success that must have made him wonder if he would ever realise the ultimate dream of a Hawthorn premiership. But he endured and for this white man he was the real story of the Hawks victory this past Saturday. Why? Because it reminds us all that sometimes the spoils we expect to receive in life don't immediately get handed to us on a silver platter. But if we remain patient, endure and stay committed to a dream then eventually we will receive our due reward. I think that's exactly the essence of what Apostle Paul had in mind when he exhorted us all to keep running the race so as to win and receive the prize that awaits us.

Well done Hawthorn! Well done Shane Crawford! And yes Crawf, this white man unashamedly cried with you last Saturday because you are a champion and you deserve your success!

And now a Storm is brewing...