Best Laid Plans (Part 2)

Please read Part 1 before you read this one. It won't make much sense if you don't. Though, it may not make sense anyway. But that is just my writing style. Sorry about that.

Once I realized that I would spend my last night (and most intense studying night) watching my team possibly win the World Series, I mapped out my days like I was escaping Alcatraz. I calculated every second of every day so that I could allow for a 2-3 hour window to watch the Phillies play. RIGHT after the game was over, I would go back to studying flood and personal umbrella policies.

When the night actually came, everything went according to plan. I studied up until 8:37 and then turned on Fox. I then spent the next few hours sweating as the Phillies went through a sprint of a game. I cheered. I yelled. I stood up. I sat down. I ran to the bathroom during commercials so as not to miss a single moment. All in a hotel room. In Allentown, PA. By myself.

When I had envisioned watching my team win a championship, I had thoughts of high-fiving a group of people. Hugging everyone in the room. Clinking bottles with friends and family. So when Brad Lidge struck out Dave Linske for the final out, I cheered. But there was no clinking of glasses. No high fives. No hugs. But there were phone calls. Before catcher Carlos Ruiz even got to Lidge to hug/tackle him, my phone was ringing. It was Missy. I think she had her finger on the "Send" button for the entire 9th inning. We talked a little bit. But most of the time, we spent in silence. We both just watched the TV, with smiles (I assume she was smiling) on our face. We did the best we could to enjoy the moment together. Then I told her I had to call my dad.

I went to my first Phillies game with my dad. I have been to countless games since then with my dad. I went to Game 1 of the NLCS with my dad - maybe you read about that. I had to call him. We talked for a little bit and then WE just sat in silence and took in the moment.

Then I called my grandfather. I wanted to catch him before he fell asleep. As big a fan as my dad and I are of the Phillies, my grandfather might be a bigger fan. I don't know if he has ever missed a game. He is such a big fan that he has converted my otherwise disinterested grandmother into a fan simply by osmosis. Every time I talk to him, we discuss two things. Golf and the Phillies. So I had to call him and congratulate him. I asked if he was going to spray champagne around their living room. He said Grandma already had on her goggles.

In addition to talking Missy, Dad and Pop, I got a call from my friend, Tim and a text from my brother in law Scott. Long distance high fives. I couldn't be in the same room as these people but we were able to share the moment nonetheless.

I finished up my conversation by telling my dad that I loved him. Because watching sports isn't just about watching your team play and win. Even when they win it all as the Phillies just did. Watching your team is about the bonds that are created with friends and especially family. I think winning a World Championship is such an incredible experience for fans because you get to share it with the people you love and who have suffered through non-championship seasons (in this case 25 years) with you. The difference is that you don't have to talk about next year. You can savor this year. At least for a little while.

I didn't study any more that night. I couldn't. I did however take a picture of the TV screen to prove that this wasn't a dream. The two words that I was so used to seeing attributed to other teams - the Red Sox, the Yankees, the Patriots - were now being put after my team's name.

Philadelphia Phillies World Champions

(This picture, by the way, is an overhead shot of Broad St., Philadelphia after the Phillies won - they estimated close to 10,000 people were there and it was one of about 15 different locations around the city that had a scene like this, you don't think this city was starved for a championship? The best way I heard it described was that it was New Year's eve but only in Philadelphia)