If “World Day for Boca Fans” can cause such a stir in Buenos Aires, then Super Bowl Sunday is the American equivalent. Too bad this time we couldn’t join the fun—we were too busy finishing our last show in Pittsburgh. But I did get a chance to meet a football star in black and white print.

Upon returning to my hotel room, I noticed a magazine with two identical men on the cover. Were they twins? Flipping to the feature story, I realized I had been fooled. The "twins" were actually the same guy: Hines Ward, a man with a kaleidoscope of talents. Not only was he named MVP of Super Bowl XL, he has also been a sports broadcaster and winner of “Dancing with the Stars.”

Okay, that's one thing we have in common: we're both dancers. Ballroom dancing isn't exactly my thing, but at least I get to dance with the stars of Shen Yun.

The coolest thing about Hines, though, is that he’s the representative for Positive Athlete Pittsburgh. This program encourages young athletes to look beyond sports competition, think of the team before oneself, and always stay on the bright side.

A positive athlete “displays a positive outlook in everything he or she does, both on and off the field,” Hines says. “It is someone who never lets the negativity of life bring him or her down. Someone who never quits and always finds the good in others and in all experiences life brings, no matter how difficult or challenging."

Wow. No wonder Obama calls him "the happiest man in football."

I like how Hines is building the same spirit that we strive to maintain. Optimism, determination, and teamwork, that's exactly what glues Shen Yun together, pushing us through each performance. After all, it isn't hard to turn something negative into something positive. With a minus sign, all you have to do is draw a vertical line down the middle, and voila! But to change a plus to a minus, you have to flip that pencil around and erase with all your might, or scribble it out violently with your ballpoint pen. Why bother?

"Positivity" isn't reserved for players on gridirons or in gymnasiums, on rinks or in stadiums. You can be a Positive Dancer on stage, or a Positive Musician in the orchestra. You can be a Positive Teacher, Engineer, Manager, or Cashier. Maybe we should start a new program called "Positive People."

So what do you say? Are you ready to make our world more positive?

February 14, 2013