The Jacket

I can remember the year Alex began playing football like it was yesterday. The year was 2000 and he was nine. He had already participated in the youth wrestling program for a several years so the shock of my baby playing a contact sport was not quite as great as it could have been. The boys would practice every night after dinner in a field behind the Intermediate High School. While the boys would practice, the parents would sit in our stadium seats and have coffee. Sometimes I even baked a sweet to share as we watched our little men practice such a big sport. There were times that the boys from the Intermediate High School would be finishing up their practice before ours began. I can remember listening to their deep voices as they siked each other up for the next game. I remember thinking how big and strong those boys looked in their practice gear. It doesn't seem possible that my little man has turned into one of those big, strong boys. Just where does the time go???

Alex is a Junior this year and through all his hard work and perseverance has earned the right to wear a Letterman jacket. We could not be more proud of him. They were measured for their jackets during the summer and just last week the jackets were distributed to the boys. There was a very nice ceremony where the jackets were presented to each mom and then she helped her son put it on for the first time. Family members were invited to attend as well so my mom being one of Alex's number one fans, jumped at the chance.




Alex is thrilled with his jacket and can hardly wait to wear it. I am thrilled that there will be no argument this winter about wearing a coat to the bus stop.