My brother and used to joke about the fact that my mother can always be counted on to find the sporting seats with the best view of everything outside the stadium. My parents have been Husky football season ticket holders where since before I was born where every year they offered my parents an opportunity to move their seats closer to center of the field often pleading with them to take better seats or just moving us without consulting my mother only to be meet her full organized wrath until our seats were moved back to the end zone so she could look out at the boats. Finally it took a massive remodel of the stadium to get her to move their seats and that was only because the real-estate that she fought so hard to hold on to all those decades those decades was turned into the new student section. Before I go any further I should clarify something about my father, to say he is a passionately devoted Husky fan would be grossly understating it. If you met my dad any other of the 6 days of the week during football season, or during any other time of the year you might think him a rather reserved C.P.A., however game time is when you see a truly emotional super-fan. It’s fair to say that on most Fall Saturday afternoons my father can get… a bit “aggravated” about moments during the game that aren’t going particularly well for the Dawgs. As long as I could remember, every year starting in late August through roughly the first week of January I have regularly been able to anticipate his emotional state and patience level for roughly the first half of the week based on how the Huskies played that Saturday. It is a lifelong fidelity that he instilled into his family through home game bonding experiences and memorable post season centered vacations. It was a central part of our life growing up. (My first lesson in marketing and economics was gauging the markup a juvenile me could get reselling the occasional extra ticket in the half hour before a home game.) Even though both his children spent at least some time studying at division 1 schools but neither of us formally attended the University of Washington, yet both of us remain active and loyal fans. Up until last year when I started working with the WSA it was safe to say we were each the most avid husky fans in our own circles of friends and chosen family. Admittedly while both my brother and I have wildly different levels of and focuses in athleticism, social or civic engagement, and the arts, the UW Husky Football Team still remains the one sports team that either of us has followed with any regularity outside of occasionally reworking the odds for casual betting pools. The reason I mention all of this is so that you can better believe and understand the next part. I also want to point out in our defense, my brother and I also might have picked up my dad’s emotional engagement as part of our fan style and as kids one usually just assumes their dad is always going to remain as healthy as he is when you are young until he just isn’t. Anyway back to my mothers unique obsession with the boats. What my brother and I didn’t realize growing up, (when admittedly we may have made a few snide remarks about her prioritization of outside view over viewing angle of the actual event), is that she was making her selection deliberately for a reason. I didn’t pick up on it until this year and the particularly tense season opener against a really tough Eastern Washington University team that I happened to join my folks for. I admit my respect for my mom and my parent’s relationship went to a whole other level when I finally realized all these years my mom has been monitoring her family’s stress level during games, (which can get a little high, especially my dad’s), and during moments of extreme tension she forces those around her to take a moment to breath and relax by looking at the view. When I realized this I admit I was floored here was a woman so devoted to the health and wellbeing of her family that she was willing to endure snarky push back from her family in order to enable them to enjoy the kind of event they wanted to enjoy while looking out for their emotional and physical well-being. I think this simple act of love has added years to his life and I am now truly thankful for my mom’s choices all these years. I mention this today, because it is my dad’s birthday and happens to be the day of a Husky home game against Stanford. I know my parent’s will likely be there and 5 or 6 times throughout the game she will point out how lovely the boats are, which will of course cause those around her to stop watching the game for a second, (usually just after something big has just happened), and look up at the boats. I for one could not think of a better way for him to spend his birthday while feeling secure that my mom is doing everything in her power to ensure he has many more just like it. I’d like to take this moment to wish him the happiest of birthdays and publicly thank him for all he has done for me. He has given me so very much and not just my love of husky football. For the rest of you husky fans going to the game as well I encourage you to occasionally take a moment to enjoy the fabulous vistas that the stadium provides, it will do wonders for your stress level and it’s just pretty. Oh and, Go Dawgs!
Posted on: Sat, 27 Sep 2014 14:49:26 +0000
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