Friendship, Companionship, and Championship: Relational Processes Supporting Honorable Causes

​We need strong relationships to become champions. Greatness is not achieved, races and battles are not won, without the support of our friends, companions, and our teammates. This summer I visited the Infantry Museum in Fort Benning, Georgia with my brother who is currently a Colonel at Fort Benning. He explained how ‘The Last One Hundred Yards’ is a fundamental part of the infantry training program for soldiers. The museum has an exhibit that shows how the infantry works to secure the last one hundred yards in historic battles. Soldiers must develop their physical core, their relational core, and their spiritual core to find courage and resilience in the battlefield to secure the last one hundred yards.
 
On the soccer field, my daughter Jessica plays for FC Sion Women’s Soccer team in the Swiss B League. She trains 4 times a week and has a match each weekend. The strong relational bonds that develop through playing together have carried her team to the championships. Jessica came from behind in her defense position to score a decisive goal for her team and assure their place within the B League in June 2022. Being part of an outstanding team provides the opportunity to experience strong emotions together, as during their final game in Sion, when they celebrated their victory.
 
Another example of friendship and companionship was the 76-kilometer Trail Verbier St. Bernard race that my son Nils ran in 14 hours and 40 minutes in July 2022. Along the mountain trail, family, friends and colleagues provided refueling with food, water and other beverages to make sure he kept up his energy during the race. This solidarity was reinforced during the last 30 kilometers when his good friend Simon ran with him to Verbier, making sure that he was accompanied to the finish line.
 
We thrive when we participate in trusting relationships that allow us to give the best of ourselves. The human family needs strong partnerships to both survive and flourish. Companionship and friendship provide the empowering relationships we need to experience championship. Victory is won through committed relationships that elicit the best of ourselves through relational commitment. When we support and defend honorable causes, we engage in championship.
 
 
The video explaining ‘The Last One Hundred Yards’

Tears of joy after victory.

Scoring a decisive goal.

Arriving at the finish line after an extraordinary performance.