The picture that is a part of this column is from a National Basketball Association playoff game in April of 2003. The Portland Trailblazers are about to take on the Dallas Mavericks. A young girl has been selected to sing the National Anthem. Her name is Natalie Gilbert. She is very nervous, and as the song begins she almost immediately is in trouble, forgetting the words. The coach of the Portland team is Maurice Cheeks. When Natalie Gilbert stumbles, Cheeks responds instantly, going to her side and helping her sing the words. Then, encouraging everyone to join in.
As they progress through the anthem, you can see and hear the young girl’s confidence return – she straightens her shoulders and her voice strengthens and grows louder. At the end, she is relieved and grateful. Cheeks hugs her and then returns to his team, to give them their final instructions before a critical game.
It is a remarkable moment. I encourage you to take the time to view the video if you can.
When Cheeks was asked what motivated him to go over and start helping Natalie, he was quoted as saying, “You know, I don’t know. I think as I saw her stumble on the words, she looked helpless, and I just started walking. I had no idea what I was going to do, what I was going to say. But as I approached her, I just wanted to help her, and I didn’t know if I even knew the words…You know, I just wanted to help her out. I didn’t want her to stand there helpless, nothing to do. So I just wanted to help her out.”
There is some tipping point at which most of us will act to help someone who is struggling. Most notably, in times of natural disaster there is typically an outpouring of support for victims. As situations become less dramatic, and the environment changes, many of us will not find the courage to act. We will not, as Maurice Cheeks did, “just start walking”.
In the arena that day, Cheeks was in a unique position to help – courtside, with the authority to go where he decided to go. Still, I think we can all agree that most of us would not have done what he did. We would have felt sorry for Natalie. But we probably would not have helped her.
That kind of leadership is rare. He was busy, it’s an important game, it’s somebody else’s deal, somebody else’s problem. But… “I just wanted to help her.”
One of the things that organizations like GFN do is to make it easier for each of us to help. To remove some of the obstacles that prevent us from being our best selves and responding to those in need. Whether through financial support, volunteering, the donation of food and grocery products or any other kind of assistance. Just as food banking connects surplus food with those who are hungry, GFN and other charities connect those with the means to help with those who need that help.
Those who know the words with those who have forgotten them.
Great post!