Football for Single Moms

This afternoon Rina came home from school and was telling me about her Spanish class. I asked her if she’d learned anything yet and she said, “Well, she says hola quite a bit…I’m starting to think it means hello.”

I’m starting to think this is going to be a long school year. The longest year ever. Of course every year is just a little bit longer than the year before, but this year I can’t just get away with slipping in unnoticed to see my kids perform in the occassional choir concert. No, this year one is captain of the cheerleading squad and the other is on the dance team and there will be football games I’m expected to attend.

Don’t get me wrong, I want to go. No, I take that back. I don’t want to go, but I do want to see my girls perform and in order to do that I have to go. No, I’m not suffering from agoraphobia. I’m stuck in a small little stuck up town…okay, maybe that’s just a little harsh….let me try again. I’m not a native of Malvern. I’m a young mother, who is now single and expected to go sit in the bleachers by herself and watch a game she knows diddly-squat about while people are rubber-necking, running into each other trying to figure out who I am and what I’m doing there.

Over the years I’ve tried several times to make friends with the other mothers, but I guess I never satsify them with the answer to If You Don’t Have Family Here, Then Why Did You Move To Malvern question. I’m pretty sure it’s impossible to get a job here without being related to someone here or without having gone to school with them. They don’t have to work there, they just have to live here.

I thought I had gotten smart one time. I had a name to throw around that would finally make me seem more of a true Malvernite. Well, it turned out that the people I threw the name out to knew them all right and not in a good way. I remember saying, “you know what, nevermind. I’m just gonna find the door now” and I left very quickly.

While I think about all the issues I have with this small town, I look at my daughters and see the true Malvernites that they’ve become. They’ll never have the problems here that I have. Of course, both of them have said they’re not going to stay here or come back here after they get out of school so I ponder almost daily my reasons for working towards staying here instead of working towards getting out of this place.

Every now and then one of my daughters will talk about a problem they’re having and depending on the outcome, they tell me they wouldn’t have a problem moving. Take for instance the big game that’s coming up against Glenrose. The very first one I’m supposed to go to..wooo ewww…sigh. Anyway, it’s the biggest game of the season and Rina said, “if we lose then I don’t care where we move to as long as it’s not near here.” See…that gets my hopes up. After thinking about it for a few minutes I realize that losing a football game does not justify picking up and leaving….no matter how bad I would like to. Now, give me another good reason and I just might!

Anyway, I’m going to do it. I am. I’ll put on my brightest “I wish a mutha would” smile and go. Honesty without kindness is cruelty, thus the need for the smile so I can say, “wow…it’s not everyday you see someone trip and fall over someone else to give a stare like that.” Is that cruel?

NO NEED TO PANIC

I found out that the football game isn’t until next Friday. The big game isn’t until the Friday after that. So, I’m relieved. Although, Tammy did give me the rundown on the basics of football and even demonstrated their techniques for me in her living room.

Let me see if I have this straight. One guy bends over and holds the ball…they say some mumbo jumbo and then he “snaps” the ball to the quarterback. The quarterback then takes the ball and either hands it off to someone else or passes it. The guy that gets the ball runs towards the end of the field and when he crosses the line he scores a touchdown. There are 2 quarters and then my daughter will perform with her dance team, then there are 2 more quarters and the game is over…unless it goes into overtime.

FOOTBALL IS THE DEVIL

I don’t know how I’m going to make it through football season. I went to my first game tonight and sat in the bleachers with Rina’s best friend’s mother. All night long people were walking up and down the bleachers making me bounce so hard on the bench that my teeth chattered. Rina performed at the beginning of the game and during the game with the cheerleaders. By half time I had had enough and she wasn’t going to be performing during the third quarter. The game makes absolutely no sense to me. What’s the deal with the yellow flags and the orange things? Oh sigh…I don’t want to go to another game.

SO MAYBE FOOTBALL ISN’T THE DEVIL AFTER ALL

Last night was the big game…Glen Rose vs. Malvern. IF I remember right, remember I’m still trying to get the gist of it, Glen Rose made two touchdowns in the first quarter. I told Jeff that Malvern was just pacing themselves and letting Glen Rose wear themselves out. Well, sure enough our boys came back and beat them. The final score was 14 to 22.

After the game we walked up to Rina and Fran and I asked her if this meant she didn’t want to move now. She said, “nope, we’re not going anywhere.” Even if they had lost, I’ve got reasons to stay in Malvern now so I’m really kind of glad that was an argument I was able to avoid. Go Leopards!

Rina did an awesome job last night. I could tell she really enjoys doing her thing on the dance team. I was wishing that I had brought a camera, but the uniforms they wore last night weren’t really my favorite anyway. Maybe we’ll take pictures at the next game when they’re wearing their other uniforms and post them so I can show her off. Fran you did an awesome job too!

I still seriously doubt I’ll be turning into a football mom. I haven’t quite caught on to the excitement of seeing boys running up and down a field with a ball trying to tackle each other. Maybe if I had boys playing in the game instead of girls cheering and dancing I’d understand it a little better. However, I do understand the excitement of seeing your kids participate in representing their school.