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Sometimes Sports Come Last

© Sue Poremba

Earlier this month, I was going to write about two parents who went through a living hell after their son's neck was broken in football but then, less than a year later, watched him jog onto the field, leading the team. I was doing some research on the story and then the world came unglued.

Like everyone else, I was stunned at the events that took place in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania. The plane crash in PA was probably most immediate and frightening for me because it was nearby. That night, we huddled the kids in the house. Normally, the neighborhood kids are playing football or basketball in our front yard. That night, kids stayed home, stayed with their parents.

The question "is it safe to play sports" took on a whole new meaning. It was more than "will my child get hurt," but "will my child's team be the next hit of a terrorist attack." Sports Illustrated did a wonderful issue the week after September 11, the week sports stood still, www.cnnsi.com. It may be the most outstanding issue ever done by my favorite magazine.

I overheard a teenager say that her friend's mother will no longer allow the friend to attend high school football games. There were fewer kids at the Penn State game on Saturday than usual.

Sports are a sense of normalcy for our kids. Maybe they can bring back some normalcy for adults, too.

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