What makes it so special?

Every year around this time, ESPN runs it's "My Wish" series, which features stories of terminally ill children who have a sports wish granted - like hanging out with Shaq or managing the Minnesota Twins for a day. ESPN and The Make a Wish Foundation do an incredible job both helping children and creating compelling TV.

I look forward to it every year because no matter what, the stories always touch my heart in ways that very few things can. Why does sports have that ability? What is so powerful about sports that it  becomes a tool to help alleviate the pain of sickness and provide hope and motivation?

I really think it's the simplicity of the thing. Sports is something that brings people back to their innocence, back to their youth. It's pure (in theory, at least) - the sheer emotion from a game winning hit, a comeback, a buzzer beater - those thing elicit such pure emotion and joy (or heartbreak). I also think it has to do with the nostalgia. If you grew up a sports fan, chances are someone took you to games when you were little. For me it was my grandfather and my uncle. To the day that I die, I will associate Seattle Mariner games and University of Washington Football games with Dr. Harry J. Kraft and Richard Kraft. They were the ones who took me to The Kingdome, they were the ones who bundled me up and drug me up to section 48 in Husky Stadium on all those brisk November Saturday's.

Maybe I'm way off as to what makes sports so special and powerful. But regardless of WHY it happens, it happens. Movies are made about it, stories are written about it, and friendships blossom over it. I don't care why sports are so rad, I'm just glad that they are.