March Madness


 Spring arrives later today.  While much of March has felt like spring (temperatures have been above the norm), today is definitely feeling winter like.  (Did I see a flurry or two while I was waiting for the bus?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  Neither would surprise me.)  I've got cold hands, cold feet...I'm feeling the cold.

Nonetheless, I am wearing a green dress that is better suited for a spring day than a cold one like today.  I threw a sweater over it to keep me warm.  (Though it's not warm enough for me at this point.)  I would have been better off wearing a sweater and slacks, but I specifically chose this dress today.  I wanted to wear this deep green comfortable dress with my green Vivaia flats (note:  they are stylish and comfortable, but not AS comfortable as I would like; despite being wide width there is still some pinching on the pinkie toe of my right foot).  

I know you are thinking that St. Patrick’s Day is past.  I didn't wear it in honor of the holiday. (I have a shamrock dress for that, because...well because!)  I wore it because green is my son's school color.  And tonight the basketball team plays their first basketball game.  They are part of March Madness.

Now my son is NOT a basketball player.  He's not an athlete at all.  (While he may have gone to some football games in high school, it was ALL for the social aspect.  I don't think he could have told you who won!)  However, his small college (which is not known for its athletics) has made it this year.  I'm wearing this dress and their color in honor and support of that.  (Not to be a Debbie Downer, but it is likely that they will not win tonight and this will be it.)  This is an achievement and I want to throw my support behind them.  

Now the game is tonight and I won't be watching.  I could say it's because I have a meeting (and I do), but the truth is I'm not a fan of sports either.  I mean I only watch the Superbowl for the ads (and even then, I don't watch that much) and watch the Olympics sporadically.  It's not my thing.

However, it WAS my father's passion.  He LOVED to watch sporting events.  And he especially loved basketball, which he played in high school.  March Madness was his thing.

Which brings me back to March of 2006.  (I'm pretty sure it was 2006.)  That was a year that Bucknell University made it into the competition.  Now my father DID not go to Bucknell, but my mother and my brother did and my father became an unofficial alum, supporting many of their sports teams.  The men's basketball team was the one (I believe) he supported the most.)  My son was not yet a year old and my dad wanted to watch the game(s).  However, his cable system did not offer whatever channel it was airing on.  Our did.

As I recall, at least one of the games was on in the afternoon.  So my dad, my husband and my son (who was not yet a year old), all dressed in their Bucknell garb (orange and blue) sat down together in our living room to "watch."  I KNOW my son didn't really watch (and I don't know how much my husband did), but they were together.  They were my guys sitting there...three generations.

And as tournements begin today, I am thinking of my dad.  I am thinking of that moment. (Or those moments).  When my men were all together; watching and just being.  I miss those days.  (Or at least I think I do...the good old days aren't always as good as we chose to remember.)  I miss the baby boy that I could cuddle and hold.  (Although I am incredibly proud of the man that he has become.)  I miss my dad this March more than ever.  (I might even miss his yelling at the television.)

March Madness means bittersweet memories for me.  I suspect it always will.


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