I love them, I love them not

Oregon Duck football! The team this year is rocking the house. Twenty straight victories at Autzen Stadium. The only loss this season to LSU. And have you seen the depth of that team?  Two star players are sidelined by injuries, yet the back-ups are every bit as good.

I should be happy.

I love Oregon Duck football. I just don't trust Oregon Duck football.

I became an Oregon fan in 1982.  Back in those days the Oregon football team was bad.  There were times where I thought the team got lost on the way to the stadium.  Fans' hopes and dreams were dashed year after year.  Each season ended with a litany of "would've, should've and could've" laments. Then something magical happened in the early 90s.  Things began to click. In 1994 the team went to the Rose Bowl.  The ROSE BOWL! This was huge for us die-hards who braved rain, wind, sleet, and darkness of night to support the team.  But the ups and downs continued through the 1990s.  Just when you got your hopes up, the team found some way to implode mid-way through the season. 

The team is really very good today.  But there is a part of me that can't forget the dismal seasons of years past.  There's a part of me afraid to get my hopes up for a national championship or even a Pac-12 championship.  What if they let me down again.  Will I just be disappointed?

It struck me that I have not been very willing to let the team change over the years.  In my mind - whether consciously or not - I've kept the image of the bumbling, fumbling, unable to execute team of the 1980s.  That's not really fair of me.  The team has worked hard over the years.  They've turned the corner. They have more than proved their desire and drive toward excellence.

I wonder in what other areas of my life have I failed to recognize change in a person?  Am I still holding friends or family to a certain expectation because that's what it use to be? 

Change is hard enough, especially change in our personal lives. I need to find ways to help others celebrate their changes, support those changes, and not force them back into a role they no longer need or want to play. 

Have you ever struggled with accepting and embracing a change in someone's life?