You must have heard of one of the best footballers ever to come out of Northern Ireland. He was George Best. George Best was simply a legend. Forget Pele, Maradona, Keegan, Cruyff, Roberto Baggio, Zinedine Zedane, Lionel Messi or all the Ronaldos; ditch Papilo Kanu Nwankwo or Austin Jay-jay Okocha. George combined everything these had individually, and more. He was explosive, on and off the ball, could read the game exceptionally and win games single-handedly. He could dribble past defenders as though they were standing still, and had the balance and swerve of a ballet dancer. He could tackle as hard as Nobby Stiles, was two footed and could head as powerfully and accurately as much bigger players. Most of all, George was total entertainment with a ball on a football pitch, who thrilled fans with often unorthodox moves to either score or set up goals.
George Best was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland on May 22, 1946. He played for his country, Northern Ireland and Manchester United. He scored 178 goals in 466 appearances for his Old Trafford club, Manchester United and scored 10 goals for Northern Ireland in 37 national caps.
While enjoying such unparallel success on the field of play, George Best himself confessed that whatever he wanted he got. He indulged in all forms of worldly pleasures – cars, travels and women. His life degenerated into alcoholism, bankruptcy, a prison sentence for drink-driving and eventually a controversial liver transplant. Asked what happened to all the money he had earned, Best replied: “I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered”. What did freedom expressed in this manner fetch him?
His fame and abundant skills indeed fetched him money and got him whatever he wanted. However, in the twilight of his life leading to his passing away in 2005, George Best was a shadow of himself. He was a sick man and looked 80 years at the age of 59. His own father, Dickie, 87 years old, survived him and he died wretched without any virtuous legacy except for eulogies that poured in from virtually everybody who had followed his phenomenal playing career.
When he passed away, the then British Prime Minister, Tony Blair led tributes to the man he called “probably the most naturally gifted footballer of his generation, one of the greatest footballers the UK has every produced. Anyone who has seen him as a football fan will never forget it.” Hiw own Republic of Ireland Prime Minister at the time, Bertie Ahern said “George should be remembered as the very best at what he did. He was quite simply a football genius”. Check out what Sir Bobby Charlton, his former Manchester United team-mate said about him: “George made an immense contribution to the game, and enriched the lives of everyone that saw him play”. A minute’s silence was observed at every Premiership football match the weekend of his passing.
All the success he achieved as a footballer were swallowed up by his unrestricted freedom. George was the architect of the ill health that killed him. His indulgence in drugs and alcohol took a heavy toll on his health and the result was death. Even though his passing was heavily mourned as the entire Irish nation was moved by his death like no other in the life of that nation – the simple fact was that he authored his life to end tragically.
He thought the freedom money and fame brought him was for him to do whatever pleased him. He was actually in bondage. Real freedom emanates from knowing the true meaning of life generally and specifically your own particular purpose for living. For you to lay claim to freedom, you must start by knowing who you are and what you are supposed to be doing on this earth. I am not sure George Best ever asked himself this all important question. If he never asked, it’s possible someone had tried to call his attention to this. It is also possible that he ignored answering the question because of his warped understanding of what freedom is. He must have consigned the concept of freedom to mean being at liberty to do whatever you like at any time you want without recourse to the responsibilities such acts were sure to bring.
George Best had a contemporary in Pele. Today, Pele is a living legend and a really free man because he knew the responsibilities of freedom and chose the best way to utilize the choices riches and fame brought his way.
In the boxing world, there are two legends as well. Mohammed Ali and ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson. Ali chose responsible freedom while Tyson chose the unrestricted path. Both are still alive as I write – one is a celebrated icon whining and dining with celebrities and carries with him a grace of notoriety while the other s a struggling man seeking relevance.
Mike Tyson’s history is pathetic. At the age of 20, he became a Heavyweight Boxing Champion in 1986. He was mentored by Italian Manager, Cus D’Amato, who moulded a freakishly sized 12-year-old into a heavyweight contender. By the time he won the championship, D’Amato had already passed away. At 22, Tyson’s other longtime associates had either died or been jettisoned as Don King invaded the champion’s life. But, without trainer Kevin Rooney, who was sacked by Tyson himself, a man who knew the D’Amato formula so well, he began to struggle, culminating in his 1990 loss to James ‘Burster’ Douglas in Tokyo.
In 1991, one Desiree Washington accused Tyson of rape but people didn’t take the threat seriously, but in February 1992, he was in court and listening to a guilty verdict that ended phase one of his boxing career. He spent his next three years in jail. Released in 1995, the former champion returned to the ring. He reclaimed his championship in a crushing rematch with Frank Bruno. He was however stopped by Evander Holyfield twice in 1996 and 1997. Lenox Lewis also demystified him later.
The fact that this man was not able to control his freedom can be traced to his very unpleasant, lonely and rough background. At 38, Tyson didn’t know who his father was. He said: “Sometimes, I don’t know who the hell I am. My mother said it was Jimmy Kirkpatrick, but my birth certificate says Purcell Tyson. How embarrassing it was, at 38, to try to get a passport only to find out I don’t know who my father is”.
Inspite of that, you must realize that it is not what happens to you that matters but what happens in you that counts. Your background could be rough and hard, but you have a responsibility to turn things around. The sea could be rough but you can re-direct your sail. There are many people with very unpleasant foundations but have gone back to lay a better foundation.
This is how Tyson has passed a verdict on his own life with the following statement: “I will never be happy. I believe I’ll die alone. I would want it that way. I’ve been a loner all my life with my secrets and pain. I’m really lost, but I’m trying to find myself. I’m really a sad, pathetic case. My whole life has been a waste – I’ve been a failure.”
He made a statement of fact but he didn’t need to close the chapter on his life. But that is the frustration that can befall a man who was never prepared for the kind of freedom that people like Tyson got when he became a celebrity. He could never adjust his personality to the demands of being one of the world’s most famous sportsmen.
For the avoidance of doubt, there are two major kinds of freedoms. The first kind which is in common practice is that which you exercise without responsibilities. I call it playing around with your life while waiting for a sure pay-day. John C. Maxwell said, if you play today, you will surely pay tomorrow. It is common sense to pay today so you could play tomorrow. In other words, your paying today is the responsibility you take to ensure your playing tomorrow which is the real freedom.
Your real freedom comes when you have properly been schooled to understand and appreciate the virtues of education, acquiring knowledge, developing yourself to reaching your potentials and taking deliberate steps to do what is required in order to achieve your set goals in the light of your ultimate vision.
(.... to be continued)
