Football Saturday

The awe of your first game—walking through those gates with all those people, up a small slope, then through a short tunnel to come out nearly at the top of the biggest college football stadium in the world, the ground gaping open before you to drop to a field of green, and maize and blue clad people swarming in to fill all those seats—that awe was Calvin's today.

We have never really pushed football on him, but because I love watching Michigan play he's been exposed to the game over the years. He has seen them play on TV and has been to almost every tailgate with our friends and family since he was born. Then this year he asked to go to a game, and my parents were able to arrange that fun (thanks to my aunt and uncle who sit next to them and were not using their tickets this week, so thanks go to all of the above).

Calvin enjoyed the crowd, asked questions about the game, and seemed to love singing the various team songs. He went home after half time because the game was slightly dull, because three hours of sitting can be a lot for a five year old (and my mom so I could stay with my dad), and because the band had already played, and that was the perfect day for him. I didn't need him to stay for the whole game—I didn't need him to be there at all—but there is great joy in sharing the things that you love with your child, especially when they seem to enjoy them as well.