I was watching Jeopardy the other evening, as I do with near religious fervour as often as possible. It is currently the Tournament of Champions, so all the contestants are exceptional, but during that match young Dhruv Gaur struggled throughout and didn't have a clue about the clue for Final Jeopardy. So, he wrote "What is, we love you Alex!' with a heart for the word love.
Host Alex Trebek continues to work despite a diagnosis of Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, a grim diagnosis. He began to read Gaur's answer/question and faltered. It became obvious that Alex was too emotional to utter any more words for a couple of seconds, something I've never witnessed before. As CNN describes what happened:
"That's very kind of you, thank you," Trebek said, choking up. The "wrong" answer left Gaur with $5. Right before Gaur's message, Trebek shared he was reentering treatment for pancreatic cancer, Gaur tweeted. Trebek announced his diagnosis in March.
"We were all hurting for him so badly," Gaur tweeted. "When Final Jeopardy came up, I could've tried to puzzle it together, but really, just kept thinking about Alex." Gaur was glad he got to say "what everybody at the tournament was thinking."
This was a touching, fleeting moment and it prompted a widespread response. Many viewers shed a few tears. Obviously Alex appreciated Dhruv's kindness, but I wonder he was also caught off guard by, in effect, expressing love to himself as he read the words? How often, if ever, do we affirm ourselves in this way? We may readily express love and encouragement to others. Yet we don't want to be self-absorbed or narcissistic, so we just don't entertain the thoughts or words of self-love.
I'm not going to suggest that we do this when we wake up every morning, yet if we are loved unconditionally by God, and God in Christ "brings us home" through sacrificial love, perhaps it's okay to remind ourselves that we are lovable from time to time.
Did you catch this tender moment on Jeopardy? And are you ready to affirm yourself as lovable?
2 comments:
I did see this tender moment on Jeopardy the other night. I was surprised by how choked up I got. Despite his diagnosis Alex has soldiered on with grace and dignity. Vanna White can step in to replace Pat Sajak but who could possibly replace our dear Alex Trebek? I'm so glad the contestant expressed what we are all feeling.
Thanks Shirley and Roger. You are both lovable for sharing your thoughts!
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