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PAGE A6, KEIZERTIMES, FEBRUARY 7, 2020 Opinion The legacy of Kobe State of the Union as reality TV entertainment The State of the Union address on Tuesday, Feb. 4, was worthy of a reality televison show. It had some- thing for every viewer. It had some- thing for people to hurrah and for others to disdain. The event started on a startling note when the President seemed to ignore House Speak- er Nancy Pelosi’s out- stretched hand before he began speaking. Did he not notice she was attempting to shake his hand? Did he snub her? It is open to interpretation. The non-handshake was book- ended with the Speaker method- ically tearing up a copy of the speech at the end of the president’s speech. Pelosi dramatically tore it in half, making a grand gesture on her feelings about the speech she just heard. Explaining her decision to tear up the speech, Pelosi said, “It was the courteous thing to do con- sidering the alternative.” During the address the president announced that he was bestowing the National Medal of Freedom on one of his galley guests, radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh. The fi rst lady then pinned the medal on him. Presidents routinely invite guests to the State of the Union and rec- ognizes them during the speech. One of the other guests this week was a military wife and mother. Af- ter praising her and other military families for their sacrifi ces, the pres- ident said he had a surprise for her, then announced that her husband was back from deployment in Af- ghanistan. It was moment worthy of The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The evening was also punctuated with the walk out of four Demo- cratic representatives; each had their own reasons for leaving. Republican members of Congress applauded many times during the address, especially when the president touted the state of the economy. They gave standing ova- tions when he touted the low unemployment rate among the demographic groups that historically have high rates. The State of the Union address is a political statement. The formal basis for the address is from Article II of the Constitution, which says the president, from time to time shall give to the Congress informa- tion of the State of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge nec- essary and expedient. A president has a lot of latitude on how they do that. We shouldn’t be surprised by a State of the Union address that refl ects the president’s reality TV background. Reality TV is enter- tainment and that is what the na- tion got Tuesday night. Donald Trump is the president. People may support or oppose his policies and political style, but re- spect for the offi ce should always be paramount for the people and members of Congress. —LAZ our opinion Antidote to winter doldrums Winter is a time to hibernate, nest, get cozy, stay indoors, where it is toasty and warm. For those not taking part in snow sports this time of year, the Keizer and Salem area offers entertainment of a more cerebral kind: live theater. The Salem Theatre Network (STN) is an alliance of 13 organi- zations that promotes life theatre in the mid-Willamette Valley region. Members of STN include Pentacle Theatre, Enlightened Theatrics and our own Keizer Homegrown The- atre. Each of the theatre companies offer shows with casts that include our friends and neighbors. These are 13 antidotes to “there’s nothing to do around here.” Local- ly, Keizer Homegrown Theatre will kick off its 2020 season on Friday Feb. 14, with Love, Loss and What I Wore, by Nora and Delia Ephron, at its theatre in the Keizer Cultural Center. Winter is the weak time for new movies, but a strong time for live theater in the area. Many fi rst-time theater audienc- es ask themselves why they didn’t go sooner. The offerings include ev- erything from drama to comedy to suspense, and sometimes musicals. Most times tickets to local theater production are less than tickets to whatever is showing at a cineplex. Aside from the thrill of live theater is the joy of spending less money for an evening’s entertainment. Appearing in the coming weeks are such diverse shows as First Date, a musical, staged by Enlighted The- atrics at Salem’s Grand Theater; Ag- atha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express at Pentacle Theatre; Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. at Willamette University’s M. Lee Pelton Theatre and Midsummer, a play with adult themes at Verona Studio in Salem’s Reed Opera House. Art should make one think, laugh or cry. There are things to do in the Keizer and Salem area in the doldrums of winter and one of those things is live theater, passion- ately staged by local people who only want to create and entertain. — LAZ By MATT RAWLINGS When I was younger, I hated Kobe Bryant. I didn’t actually hate him as a hu- man, I just hated that he would con- tinuously torch my favorite team. As a Portland Trail Blazers fan, Kobe and the Los Angeles Lakers ripped my heart out of my chest more times than I could remember. Whether it was the infamous alley-oop to Shaq in Game 7 of the 2000 Western Confer- ence Finals or the im- possible game-winning 3-pointer in the fi nal game of the 2004 season, Kobe crushed Blazer fans for the better part of two decades. Off the court, I was never a fan of Kobe either. He cursed more than any athlete I’ve ever witnessed. I thought he was selfi sh and oftentimes a bad teammate. And no matter how much time passed, I never forgot how he was accused of sexual assault in 2003. Although the case was dropped by prosecutors after 14 months, the situ- ation, at very best, should be viewed as morally abhorrent. But on the morning of Jan. 26, I cried real tears over a man that I didn’t know — and didn’t particu- larly like. When my little brother texted me that Kobe Bryant had died in a he- licopter crash, I didn’t believe him. I checked every website I could to see if anyone would refute the re- port. When the reality set in, I found myself having trouble grappling with my emotions. It’s been nearly two weeks since Kobe, his 13-year old daughter Gi- anna and seven others lives were taken in a fateful helicopter crash in in Calabasas, California. And still, I fi nd myself reading a story or watch- ing a video about Kobe that brings my emotions swarming back. It has caused me to wrestle with why his death, and the deaths of others on board, has affected me so greatly. Sure, I have good memories of Kobe. I watched him play for almost my entire life. He grew up in front of the world. I will always remember watching the gold medal game at the 2008 Olympics against Spain with my dad and my brothers and seeing Kobe take over the game, putting USA basketball back in global domination. I will always remember watching Kobe’s fi nal game with my bud- dy Jordan, and seeing #24 drop 60 on the Utah Jazz as he bid farewell to the game that he had played his whole life. But the thing is, Kobe’s impact, and the impact of this devastating accident, was far greater than Kobe’s basketball career. For more than half of his 41 years on Earth, Kobe seemed larger than life. I believe that’s one of the reasons his death was a shock to so many people — it was a reminder how temporary and fragile life is. Hours after Kobe’s death, it was almost surreal to witness what was unfolding on on television and social media. One of the things I admired about Kobe’s post-basketball life was that, being the father of four daughters, he was an incredible advocate for wom- en’s sports. Kobe had visited with the Uni- versity of Oregon women’s basket- ball team on numerous occasions and developed a particularly close friend- ship with Sabrina Ionescu — one of the top players in the country. Oregon was sched- uled to play a nationally televised game with Or- egon State less than three hours after the death of Kobe. When I saw Io- nescu on the verge of sobbing while warming up to play, I too began to weep. I continued to be teary-eyed when I saw the reaction of a litany of sports personalities trying, and ul- timately failing, to hold back their emotions. I cried some more when I thought of the families who would never see their loved ones again, and for Kobe’s wife of nearly 20 years, Vanessa, who has to raise three girls while dealing with the loss of her husband and daughter. But through this tragedy, we were able to see something beautiful. It’s not a leap to say that this coun- try has never been more divided politically. And with the upcoming 2020 presidential election, that divi- sion will likely grow more and more. But I have always believed that sports are the great unifi er. And we have been able to witness that over the past two weeks. On the day of Kobe’s death, thou- sands of people of different races, political ideologies, religions, gen- ders and sexual orientations gath- ered outside of Staples Center in Los Angeles to mourn the loss of one of their heroes. About 1,000 miles north of Sta- ples Center, before the Oregon and Oregon State women’s basketball teams got set to play in a top 10 showdown in Corvallis, OR. State senior Maddie Washington was the fi rst to walk to the other side of the court to console members of the Or- egon team. Moments later, the two teams were locked arm-in-arm at mid- court, engaging in prayer. “I know we’re supposed to be ri- vals, but when you see someone in pain, you just want to put your arms around them,” Thompson said. In the coming days, people weren’t just mourning the death of their favorite basketball player, they were celebrating the life of a man who inspired them. Much has been made about Ko- be’s mantra of having of “Mam- ba Mentality.” What does having a “Mamba Mentality” mean? Kobe put it this way: “Mamba mentality is all about focusing on the process and trusting in the hard work when it matters most. It’s the ultimate mantra for the competitive spirit. It started just as a hashtag that came to me one day, and it’s grown into something athletes — and even non-athletes — embrace as a mindset.” “Hard work outweighs talent — every time. Mamba mentality is about 4 a.m. workouts, doing more the mind of matt than the next guy and then trusting in the work you’ve put in when it’s time to perform. Without studying, preparation and practice, you’re leav- ing the outcome to fate. I don’t do fate.” I never thought Kobe was the greatest basketball player ever. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone — athlete or non-athlete — work hard- er at his craft than Kobe. The man was a world-class athlete and an absolute artist on the basket- ball fl oor, but it was the having the mindset that nobody was going to outwork him was what separated him from the normal star athlete. It’s been well documented that many athletes struggle to adjust to normal life once their career is over. But people close to Kobe claimed that he had never been more content than when he was retired. Kobe used the “Mamba Mental- ity” to attack every phase of his life with tenacity, especially when it came to being a father of his four girls. On many days, I view social media as a toxic cesspool of nonsense. But over the last couple weeks, it’s been amazing to see the stories from peo- ple — from all walks of life — that were inspired by Kobe. Even people who didn’t follow sports were infl uenced by Kobe. There were numerous accounts shared on social media of how peo- ple used Kobe’s motto to get through the suffering and the struggles that life often brings. I also loved seeing the stories of those who had the chance to meet Kobe later in his life and share how he was humble, how he provided ad- vice and became a mentor to many and how much he loved being a “girl dad.” But through this whole process, I still think about and feel for the vic- tims of sexual assault who may have been traumatized or triggered by this situation. If anyone like me is having trou- ble processing their complex and complicated feelings on the death of Kobe, I have a piece of advice. It’s okay to mourn a fl awed per- son — because at the end of the day, we’re all incredibly fl awed. I have never been accused of a heinous crime, but I fall short on a daily basis. Over the course of my 28 years on Earth, I have had bouts of total self- ishness. I have lied and I have contin- uously failed the ones that I love. I sin on a daily basis. But when I come face-to-face with my own mortality, my hope is that people won’t remember my long list of shortcomings. My hope is that, instead, people will remember the times that I succeeded. The times that I served people well and loved with all my heart. I believe that former NFL offen- sive lineman Rich Ohrnberger said it best: “We’re all fl awed in some ways. Nobody is, or has ever been perfect, but if the sum of your life is worth being modeled after, you’ve achieved a lot.” Kobe Bryant achieved a lot. (Matt Rawlings is the associate editor of the Keizertimes.) The little-known origins of Valentine’s Day Keizertimes Wheatland Publishing Corp. 142 Chemawa Road N. • Keizer, Oregon 97303 Phone: 503.390.1051 • www.keizertimes.com MANAGING EDITOR Eric A. Howald editor@keizertimes.com SUBSCRIPTIONS One year: $35 in Marion County, $43 outside Marion County, $55 outside Oregon ASSOCIATE EDITOR Matt Rawlings news@keizertimes.com COMMUNITY REPORTER PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY Lauren Murphy reporter@keizertimes.com Publication No: USPS 679-430 ADVERTISING POSTMASTER Paula Moseley advertising@keizertimes.com Send address changes to: PRODUCTION MANAGER & GRAPHIC DESIGNER Andrew Jackson graphics@keizertimes.com LEGAL NOTICES legals@keizertimes.com BUSINESS MANAGER EDITOR & PUBLISHER Lyndon Zaitz publisher@keizertimes.com 2019-2020 President Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association Keizertimes Circulation 142 Chemawa Road N. Keizer, OR 97303 Periodical postage paid at Salem, Oregon Leah Stevens billing@keizertimes.com RECEPTION Lori Beyeler INTERN Brooklyn Flint facebook.com/keizertimes twitter.com/keizertimes Why is February 14 celebrated as the day of love? The answer is not that buying cards needed a boost. And there’s actually more to the origin of Valentine’s Day than just candy, red roses and another reason to invite one’s favorite com- panion to dinner outside the home. Though my younger years were spent in college classrooms where the sub- ject was world history, I do not recall a mention of St. Valentine. Maybe I drift- ed off on a warm spring afternoon at the University of Oregon when the subject of saints by name of Valentine came up. Fact is, Valentine’s Day has its origin in legend. One legend informs us that a 3rd century emperor, Mar- cus Aurelius Claudius Gothicus, also known a Claudius II, found it diffi cult to fi nd men to join his army because, he believed, the men around were too attached to their wives to fi ght wars. He, of course, chose the “logical” thing to do: he banned all marriag- es. Yet, Claudius II ignored that one powerful factor that we know mo- tivates humans to move mountains for one another. What’s that? You guessed it—love. Meanwhile, there was a local man by the name of St. Valentine. Valentine viewed the emperor’s action as a pro- found injustice and thereby decided to do something about it. Thumb- ing his nose at the emperor, he went about the land offi ciating at the mar- riage of young couples. Valentine may have hoped to keep his activity a secret. However, when Claudius II discovered Valentine’s treachery he had him ar- rested, beaten and had him hanged. The more one re- searches the subject, the more there is to learn. One of the most popular symbols of Valentine’s Day is Cupid, the Roman god of love. There’s also the tale of another Valentine, a Christian priest, who was jailed for performing miracles. From his prison cell, it’s alleged he wrote to a local lady he’d cured of blindness. Legend has it, he signed his letter, “From your Valentine.” The ancient Romans also cele- brated the feast of Luperalia, a spring festival held on the 15th of February whose reported events are too lewd to describe in a family newspaper. With the coming into prominence of Christianity, the holiday moved to February 14. Ultimately, a few hun- dred years ago, Christians came to cel- ebrate February 14 as a special day in recognition of early Christian martyrs named Valentine. The custom of choosing a sweet- heart on this date spread throughout Europe in the Middle Ages. Lat- er, Valentine’s Day found its way to gene h. mcintyre the American colonies. Then, too, throughout much of history during the last two millennia, people believed birds picked their mates for them on February 14. Whatever Valentine’s Day has brought to humanity, in 496 AD, Pope Gelasius declared February 14 as “Valentine’s Day.” It’s never been rec- ognized an offi cial holiday in Ameri- ca. While some agree that the greeting card idea had its origin from a Valen- tine’s jail cell in olden times. Yes, my life is richer and more fulfi lling because I am a most-enrap- turing Valentine. Speaking from the heart about things I love beyond my personal love interest, I confess an en- during affection for the fi nest heart- felt music: the treasure of romance in the musical masterpieces produced by George Gershwin. For now and our future, love, along with job opportuni- ties and human dignity are the funda- mentals for survival in America with emphasis on expressing love, as a tool of universal communication, every way, every day, not just reserved for February 14 as love cannot be over- stated. (Gene H. McIntyre lives in Keizer. He shares his opinion frequently in the Keizertimes.) SHARE your opinion Submit a letter to the editor, or a guest column by noon Tuesday. Email to: publisher@keizertimes.com
