It was the poet John Lydgate who once said, "You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time."
Why am I worried about the words of a man who died in 1451? Because that saying is taking on relevance these days when it comes to the College Football Playoff.
The system, which is in its first year, has gained attention of late because it doesn't seem to be pleasing all of the people.
And I'm not talking about the people you might think. It's easy to apply those words to the fans of Baylor and TCU, the aggrieved parties on the teams sitting in spots five and six who were the first ones out of the four-team playoff.
No, I'm talking about about the grousing that's been going on of late by some parents whose sons play for the four teams in the playoffs - Alabama, Oregon, Florida State and Ohio State.
It seems as if these parents are upset about the fact that instead of having to go to one bowl game this season, they may have to go to two if their son's team wins its semifinal game and advances to the championship game.
Let's take this point by point.
First, is the cost of attending a bowl game steep? Sure. You're talking about travel costs - whether it be buying a plane ticket or paying for gas to drive there - and then lodging and food while you're there.
But is anyone making you go? Not hardly. It's the price of doing business if you want to see your son play.
Second, is your attendance mandatory? Nope. No game I know of has ever been canceled because a fan - no matter how big a Superfan - couldn't be at a game.
In fact, I once covered a college basketball game where no fans were allowed in the gym after it was cleared out due to unruly behavior.
Third, your complaining assumes your team is going to win and thus play in another game. That's not crying over spilled milk, that's crying over unspilled milk. Cross that bridge when you come to it.
Fourth, they make it sound like everything is coming out of their own pocket. In actuality, schools are allowed to use a special fund to help subsidize the trips for families who need help. Sure, it won't cover the second game, because not many people saw this new format coming. But complaining about not having twice the help is like saying I wouldn't let a friend pay for my lunch because he's not going to be around later to buy me dinner, too.
But the crux of the matter is this: Life is all about making tough decisions.
These players are in school, so what better time for them to learn a life lesson?
Sometimes in life, you're going to be faced with a dilemma. Instead of complaining about it, you're going to have to deal with it. After taking everything into account, you'll make the best decision you can, with a large factor being the determination of what is best for you.
Is it easy? Nope. But neither is life.
In my more than two decades as a sportswriter, I've seen a wide variety of sacrifices parents have made to attend the games played by their children. Some of those sacrifices are what I would consider excessive, like the expenses they incur, or using up all their vacation time to travel far and wide, but that's their call.
But do you know what almost all of them had in common? They made those sacrifices, and they didn't expect any sympathy. They made them because they deemed it important, and they dealt with the consequences.
When it comes time to play the three biggest games of this season, much will be made of how the players "left it all on the field." It won't be, "They gave until it became tough, and then they quit." The players know how to make sacrifices for what's important to them.
These parents need to learn how to do the same.