April 28
Jacksonville
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice....
Romans 12:14-15a (NKJV)
“Dog meat! Dog meat!” the young man next to me kept it up, his voice hoarse and impassioned. My Florida Gators had just taken the field and he was giving it to 'em. I can’t remember what I did just then. Sitting high in the stadium, I probably looked away to the scoreboard—or did something, anything to distance myself from my friend, for he was my friend. Back then, Tommy was a cross between Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer and Star Wars' Han Solo. He was also a diehard Georgia Bulldog fan. Unfortunately, we were sitting smack dab in the middle of a sea of blue and orange. The Florida faithful surrounded us! Unlike me, these were seasoned veterans of the yearly ritual and only a little annoyed with Tommy.
It was 1971, and Tommy and I had driven up from St Petersburg, Florida to see the annual Georgia-Florida showdown. We met friends in Gainesville and continued our drive to Jacksonville, Florida—somewhat neutral territory for the grand event. As I recall, it was a disappointing day. Georgia played great that year. In fact, back in those days, Georgia was something of a powerhouse, and they beat us more times than I care to remember.
But this is a new era. Those days are long gone, and Florida has since won two national titles and beaten Georgia 15 of the last 17 meetings ... until this last weekend. This time Georgia fans rejoiced with a rare win over their longtime rivals.
As I read the newspaper account of Georgia's sound 42-30 victory, my friend's raucous voice fills my head again, and I smile. I have to. I don’t know why, but it gives me a little bit of pleasure to know Tommy is happy ... and probably gloating in some shiny, high-rise, office building in Atlanta.
All I can say is, Congratulations, Georgia fans, on a great game and a great win! And I promise, I won’t say a word about next year....
Lord, thank You for sports and games and the thrill of victory. Thanks, too, for the ability to appreciate someone else’s win—even at my expense. Amen.
Jacksonville
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice....
Romans 12:14-15a (NKJV)
“Dog meat! Dog meat!” the young man next to me kept it up, his voice hoarse and impassioned. My Florida Gators had just taken the field and he was giving it to 'em. I can’t remember what I did just then. Sitting high in the stadium, I probably looked away to the scoreboard—or did something, anything to distance myself from my friend, for he was my friend. Back then, Tommy was a cross between Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer and Star Wars' Han Solo. He was also a diehard Georgia Bulldog fan. Unfortunately, we were sitting smack dab in the middle of a sea of blue and orange. The Florida faithful surrounded us! Unlike me, these were seasoned veterans of the yearly ritual and only a little annoyed with Tommy.
It was 1971, and Tommy and I had driven up from St Petersburg, Florida to see the annual Georgia-Florida showdown. We met friends in Gainesville and continued our drive to Jacksonville, Florida—somewhat neutral territory for the grand event. As I recall, it was a disappointing day. Georgia played great that year. In fact, back in those days, Georgia was something of a powerhouse, and they beat us more times than I care to remember.
But this is a new era. Those days are long gone, and Florida has since won two national titles and beaten Georgia 15 of the last 17 meetings ... until this last weekend. This time Georgia fans rejoiced with a rare win over their longtime rivals.
As I read the newspaper account of Georgia's sound 42-30 victory, my friend's raucous voice fills my head again, and I smile. I have to. I don’t know why, but it gives me a little bit of pleasure to know Tommy is happy ... and probably gloating in some shiny, high-rise, office building in Atlanta.
All I can say is, Congratulations, Georgia fans, on a great game and a great win! And I promise, I won’t say a word about next year....
Lord, thank You for sports and games and the thrill of victory. Thanks, too, for the ability to appreciate someone else’s win—even at my expense. Amen.
posted by Craig Soderquist at 8:21 AM
<< Home