Small Town Football Night and My Attitude Adjustment

Last night we went to a high school football game in the town where my husband grew up. It was a beautiful night -- cool with a nice breeze carrying with it the last tendrils of summer warmth and the faint smell of wood smoke. Most of the older folks had light jackets and sweaters in the crooks of their arms, ready to be draped over shoulders once the sun fully set behind the Bald Eagle mountain range close on the horizon. The younger crowd, and surprisingly most of the older crowd, were displaying all the glory of their hometown school spirit -- orange and black t-shirts, sweatshirts, jackets and ballcaps. It was quite the sight to behold. Even our adult daughter wore her fathers 40+ year old team jacket. I'm used to seeing a large portion of the people I work with and the student body sporting the blue and white colors of the local university, but this was really something. It was fun and I felt excited to see all the support for the team in addition to the large turnout for the game.

The home team won the coin toss and deferred. It was only a few minutes to the first touchdown. The Golden Eagles scored and the bleachers began to rumble. Everyone in the bleachers stomping their feet and cheering! It was not only exciting but exhilarating to feel the cheering for the home team! What a great start to the game! And it kept on going from there... at half-time the score was 33-0. Poor Visitors.

We were seated on the first row of our section and as I watched the groups of boys and girls -- ranging in age from 9 or 10 through 15 or 16 -- running back and forth from the concession stand, from the rest rooms, from groups of friends, with their arms looped around each other, the girls laughing and eyes darting, wanting to be seen but not really...the boys in gangs, so cool, so clean, clothes neat, hair combed, I came to realize that these kids were really nice kids. The boys waited for the girls to clear the ramp onto the bleachers before going down, there was no yelling or screaming, no cursing, no pushing or rude behavior. There were quick hellos and lingering eye contact between the cute wrestler and the sweet girl with the giant orange and black bow in her hair. There was an abrupt, "Hi Mallory!" from the chisled faced red-headed boy to the blushing brunette. Her face was flaming red while her friends giggled and hugged her and each other as they scurried to the other end of the section all the while she and he were in an eye-lock.

The little ones were on the shoulders of their "Pap" held high above the crowds as they were taken to get treats. The babies were bundled up in orange and black blankets, their little squeaks and sounds helping to round out the big cheers. The young and very young parents, the grandparents, the dads who lined the fences at the end zones, and the elderly and infirm visitors from the local health care facility, these were the hometown spirit and heart of the team.

My husband tells me many of the last names of the players were the same last names of boys he played football with in that same high school four decades earlier.

After we left and headed for home I couldn't stop thinking about how much of a gift it is for my husband to be able to revisit his past and it still be such a positive experience.  Yes, the town is economically depressed and has been since the 1970s, but they hold a lot of community activities supported by their local churches and social agencies. They have a very good school system, and it's a safe place to raise a family with access to a beautiful community pool, acres and acres of community park, playground, rink, a stocked pond and stream for fishing, and a local library. What more could you ask for or need?

When we moved to the area five years ago I never thought I would develop such a soft spot for that dirty old town I'd been visiting since 1975, when my husband and I first met. Yet, when I think about what makes our country great, I certainly don't think about our government or our elected prostitutes politicians. I think about all the small towns across America just like my husband's small town. Small towns full of people who are doing the best with what they've got, who earn what they have, who teach their sons and daughters what's right and wrong, what's good and evil, and then let them have a go at the world without hovering over them or making excuses for their mistakes. They're accepting. Their temperament is one that is straightforward...what you see is what you get and if you don't like it, well, ok. Towns full of people who work very hard -- in chemical plants, glass factories, garment manufacturers, meatpacking plants, and in days gone by, for the Pennsylvania Railroad like my husband's grandfather and great-grandfather. These small town folks made this nation great, giving its best men to the armed services since the beginning of our country's founding. We have visited the cemeteries at the little country churches out on the back roads and dusty lanes during our Sunday drives and it was surprising to me how many of the headstones mark the remains of Revolutionary War veterans. Yes, you read that correctly, Revolutionary War.

For a long, long time I was not happy to be living here. I was "homesick" for New York/New Jersey. I missed my beautiful house, I missed my beautiful pool, my 10 month job with the great salary. I couldn't stand the "hickness" of this place called Central Pennsylvania. Everyone was a hayseed, a rube. Over time I've come to realize that here there is no pretense. What you see is what you get. Yes, they're plain, they're simple, they're ordinary. But, they love their country, their home teams and their families. And, I'd say they love God too, because the churches here are always full on Sunday and everyone is kind.  Living here reminds me of when I was a kid in the 60s. The family traditions are strong here and the ties that bind are strong as well.

I think I'll stop complaining in my head (I try not to vocalize my criticisms because I don't want to hurt people's feelings since everyone is so nice) about living here in "God's country" and just appreciate it for what it is... a great part of the country that still holds fast to traditional values and community.  It's the America I've missed for a long time and it's about time I quit the sulk and appreciate it.

 I can't wait for the next home game.