A true fan is a die hard fan … that means they will cheer for their team no matter what happens.

In my last post, I mentioned that I would be writing two blogs about fans. You can check out the first post here. I wrote about how sneaky fans can be. They just show up and sometimes you have no idea who they are until they bring out their jerseys.

This post – like my last one – focusses on the Toronto Maple Leafs. It’s my team, what can I say.

They have fans everywhere. In every city and arena they play, you will find people cheering for the Leafs.

… And they will keep cheering. They will show up every time and they will take the abuse that other fans dish out. 

Leaf fans are die hard fans. 

The other night the Leafs were in Ottawa for a game, and the “Go Leafs Go” chant was definitely louder than the “Go Sens Go” chant.

The game was all Ottawa, which was surprising because Toronto is tied for the fourth best team in the NHL right now, and Ottawa is dead last. Yet the game looked like Toronto was headed to the first overall draft pick lottery instead of the Senators.

As a team, the Leafs know how to disappoint their fans like no other team. When you haven’t won a championship in over 50 years, you know there has been much disappointment. 

The jokes about the Leafs have circled for years: “Why are the Leafs the best golfers? Because they are finished playing hockey in April”; “It’s spring time – the Leafs will be falling”.  

I’ve heard these jokes over and over. And every time they lose, it just adds to the fan abuse we Leaf fans endure.

They have laws against physical abuse, verbal abuse, elder abuse … they need a whole new category for Leaf fan abuse. 

No other team has taken it on the chin like Leaf fans.

The other night when they played so horribly, I had a hard time watching. I had a few other things I needed to do, so I chose to do them in another room from where the TV was. 

I could hear when they were being scored on and I listened as the announcers commented on their horrible defence. 

But I just couldn’t get myself to watch it. 

Maybe that makes me a bad fan. But I’ll be tuning in to the next game with high hopes that this past week was caused by nothing more than team flu-like symptoms and that they are all better now. 

The thing is, all the disappointments, all the mockery that is heaped on Leaf fans doesn’t deter them from cheering for their team.

You see, there is this undeniable hope, this deep-seated belief that one day we will be proved Stanley Cup champions again. 

And no amount of hardship will dissuade these fans or deny them of the joy that is to come. 

Here’s the thing: This life brings with it, at times, much disappointment and hardship. There are dissenters everywhere, all around you. Yet, as a Christian, you believe in the return of Christ, and that one day the joy of being united with Him and all those who claim to be His will be uncontainable. Die hard fans never give up on their team and Christians never give up on their Saviour – no matter what the circumstances or conditions they find themselves in. Cheer on!

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What conditions make it hard for you to cheer on? Leave your comments below.