This I Believe: Belly-Backs
I believe in the power of giving and receiving belly backs. You all are probably wondering what this is. One day, I was petting my dog and I really thought that I could do better scratching areas that he couldn’t reach. To do this, I rubbed his back and his belly/chest area at the same time. The result was perfect. My dog could not get enough of it and always acknowledges that my method of giving belly backs is the best. The more I thought about this, the more I thought about applying it to actual human beings. This came before a hockey game sophomore year with my friend Henry Mansky, where I decided to give him a signature belly back. He was fired up.
That game, we played really well, especially Henry, so he urged me to keep that going. Before every game, I would occasionally give belly backs to a few kids, who I assume liked it. This act is not just for a specific pregame or to rile someone up. I genuinely believe that it has a calming effect on the person receiving it and the person giving it. I was glad to see that many of my friends picked this up and gave it right back to me. It doesn’t have to be in a sports setting but it can be in any type of location that the person sees fit. I just think it’s funny that a way of petting for my dog has turned into gesture of fraternity, love, and acceptance.
To extend off of this, the most important thing we can do as fellow human beings is letting people know they are loved in some way. This can be in the form of a high five, hug, or maybe even take a page out of my playbook and give a belly back. The gesture may seem small, but you never know what is going on with that person, so treat them with the respect that you would want to receive. I believe in unconditional love. I believe in acceptance of everyone. I believe in belly backs.
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