One of the most winning things about spirits irrepressible is that they always come out swinging. And that resilient spirit was on prideful display at Wimbledon, which respectfully went its traditional way even as the people of London marked the dastardly bombing of the “tube” with sad but resolute hearts.
As expected, Roger Federer banished his Swedish opponent, Jonas Bjorkman, in the semifinals.
''I was flawless,'' Federer said. ''I had high expectations to win this match today. And then to come through and play at the level I did today, that's great.'' He went on to say, ''It's just a beautiful feeling. You don't get it very often. When you can dominate an opponent, it's always sort of nice. But then especially in a semifinals of a Grand Slam, it's even better.''
In the final on Sunday, he went on to trouce the Spanish racketeer Rafael Nadal, despite the mind-troubling reality that Nadal had beat him in the French Open and in four other recent outings.
Now, his record of four consecutive Wimbledon wins rockets him to the sunny heaven of tennis with Bjorn Borg, who won five in a row, and Pete Sampras, who went four for four.
But more than anything else, the continuance of the matches even in the solemnity of mourning bespeaks the power stroke of the human spirit, whether it is applied to the most serious intent or simply to masterful frivolity.
It is that same irrepressible strength that will allow it in time to dominate its opponents, including the recent excrescence of purblind evil we call terrorists.
Tom Attea, humorist and creator of NewsLaugh.com, has had six shows produced Off-Broadway and has written comedy for TV. Critics have called his writing ""delightfully funny" and "witty" with "good, genuine laughs." |
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