Every year ‘bout this time I get a little pouty and sad because Kyle’s football season has come to an end. But this year it’s an extra big deal, because it’s the closure of six years worth of youth football–wow, I blinked and it’s over. It makes me cry to think about it.
I was a single mom when I signed my second grade boy up for Jr. All American football. After the first week of hitting he came and sat on my lap and put his little hands on my face and thanked me with all his heart.
“Mommy, I get to hit people and it’s ok –this is the best thing ever! I am going to play in college and the NFL. Football is my life mommy.”
And to Kyle’s credit he has pursued his dream with a vengeance.
We’ve been through tough seasons and injuries (a slashed eye, a bum knee, and the swine flu), made tremendous friends (you know who you are Chargers ladies and Titan mammas), and lost our voices on the field of victory and defeat. There have been teams filled with strife, years where the angels sang (2008 Chargers Clinic and 2010 Titans PW ranked 3rd in the nation) and ordinary years that have been just fair to middling.
I remember suiting Kyle up as a little guy (six years old) and fumbling around trying to strap on the pads. I got so tangled up with the cords sometimes we’d get snapped in the face by an errant strap. Kyle and I would laugh because mommy was so clueless about the gear.
But not anymore…
I’ve washed those football pants thousand of nights with my eyes closed and I can place 20 pads in the right pocket blindfolded.
We’ve played in the ‘hood, been smack talked by Southgate and left with police escorts.
I now know what a center is, a full back, a nose guard, a right tackle, and a defensive end –because those are all the positions I’ve watched #70 play.
Faith was always by his side cheering him on and now baby Kolby can lift her tiny hands in the air and yell for her big bro.
Thank you to the coaches that volunteered endless hours, to the team moms who slaved away putting together collages, and to the kids who played their hearts out.
And mostly, I thank God for putting a dream in a little boy and directing his every step.
Now we are on to high school football –a new adventure, and while I’m wistful about the past I look forward to this next adventure with my beloved son.
