Yes, it's "just a game." I know, I know.
But as I sit here on this beautiful sunny April day, I keep remembering back to so many other games. Some heart breakers--like Indiana in '81. Or Kansas in '08. Or last year. Oh my, painful. But somehow, there was a bond forged in that terrible disappointment...not just among the team, but among all us fans, all us "family." We have two children attending UNC right now, and both were there last year for that exciting, brutal, amazing, terrible finale to the season. To this day, they still don't like to talk about it.
And I'm remembering the first and only time I've ever been to a Final Four. Boy, I did it right, because I went with my sister, Mary Norris (who is absolutely and officially the sweetest person on the planet--no contest) way back in '82 in New Orleans. What memories--walking those streets and talking about nothing but basketball. We'd try to change the topic...but within a minute or two, we were back at it, strategizing, hoping, praying.
And before every game, we'd eat at least a few bites of a poppyseed bagel, because improbably we were somehow convinced this brought the Tar Heels good luck. Go figure. Those bagels got mighty stale by Monday evening, but we managed to choke them down anyway. You're welcome Dean and all the Tar Heels. (Meanwhile my other wonderful sister, Jane, was convinced it was the Altoids mints she ate before and during every game--she had fabulous breath that season, but I'm not sure she's eaten one since.)
I remember that Sunday, strolling the streets of New Orleans and finding ourselves walking behind a tall skinny freshman named Mike. Yep, that Mike who would go on to hit the winning shot the next day in the National Championship.
And I remember screaming our lungs out at that game--standing up and jumping up and down the whole time--and at the very end, turning to deliriously hug and high five my sister when James Worthy got the ball in those last seconds...but my sister was sitting down for the first time. What??? Turns out, she was sobbing. Her head buried in her hands, weeping over the sheer joy of it all. Over the indomitable fight of Worthy and the boys in light blue.
And I remember watching our beloved Dean Smith smiling, but always, always deflecting the spotlight away from himself and onto his players and other people. Because that was Dean.
And now here we are again. My daughter and her six housemates are armed and ready. Yeah, you can pretty much label them fanatics. They're seniors now, so this is it. Janie's the one who wore her Marcus Paige jersey to greet the team after they lost last year...and she held up a sign that read "Even when you take your jersey off, I keep it on."
I know that come about 11:15 tonight or maybe even Monday night, a lot of us may very well be heartbroken again. It's so hard to win a National Championship....and boy, it's even harder to lose one. But even so, oh goodness, I'm so thankful to be a part of this and to share this with my family and friends and the Carolina family. No matter what, we love this team. We love this university. We love this family.
I can't think of a single spiritual thing to say about it all except to say, thank You Lord for the joy of being a part of living and loving...and cheering and praying. (Yes, I'm not ashamed to admit it!) These are the days you just feel thankful for the gift of life...even when it's hard or disappointing or downright perplexing. It's all a gift from our gracious, generous, all good and great God.
So goooo Heels! Thank you for so many wonderful memories. Thank you for so many amazing stories. Thank you for so many lessons learned. Thank you for never giving up. Thank you for enduring criticism and continuing to play hard. Thank you for reminding us that it's always too soon to quit and it's never too late to begin again.
We're hoping and praying and cheering as hard as we can from about every corner of this state. But if you come up short, that's okay. We may shed a few tears (even though it's "just a game"), but we'll love you just as much...because we're family. Always.
But until that last buzzer sounds tonight, we'll keep praying and cheering and hoping. Because we're Tar Heels. And it's always a great day to be a Tar Heel!
To God be the glory.
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