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| At Yankee Stadium |
When a New
York Yankee fan and a Boston Red Sox fan get together and become a couple,
onlookers throw a variety of adjectives at you: cute, crazy, difficult,
passionate. We have heard everything tossed our way, “Wow, I would hate to be
in your house during the Sox/ Yanks baseball series.” “What was it like during
the 2003, 2004 seasons?” And the questions go on and on.
It has
been 10 years since I whipped a coffee mug at my dear Yankee fan husband. During
the 2003, ALCS, the Red Sox were on the verge of beating the Yankees, and would put them in the World Series -- with a chance to win for
the first time in 85 years – since 1918. Nineteen freaking eighteen, people!!
Baseball
fans remember it well. Grady Little left Pedro in for too many innings and the
rest is history. The Red Sox lost. The Yankees headed to the World Series. All
of New England was devastated; I was
devastated. It is why I threw a coffee mug at Yankee fan husband. (He was
cheering for his team, which wasn’t a big offense, but at my apartment that
night, it was!)
We have
always had a contentious time with our baseball allegiances. A few weeks after
the “coffee mug ALCS” incident, we were invited to appear on ESPN’s Cold Pizza
to talk about our “issues” when it comes to baseball and how we manage to
survive with one another during the season and into the playoffs.
But when
you add kids into the mix and you start having babies, it becomes… well… a
whole new ballgame. You have to deal with the fact that your kid might not like
your team or that you might have to raise them in a way that you never thought
you would. The questions from outsiders then become something like this, “Is
your child a Sox fan or a Yankees fan?” “Does your kid watch the games with
you?” “What team do they cheer for?” “Are you OK with them being a Yankee fan?”
“What are you going to raise them as?”
My
husband and I agreed that if we had boys, they would follow the gender rule and
we would raise them Yankee fans – like Daddy. But, if we had girls, we would
then raise them as Red Sox fans like Mommy. With two boys, I lost the “baseball”
coin toss and agreed to accept that I would adorn my boys with Yankee shirts,
sweatshirts, baseball hats and whatever other Yankee gear they wanted. I tried
a few times to convince them that the Red Sox were a better team, but I wasn’t
getting anywhere and gave up the good fight.
I even had
a photo shoot with one of my son’s when he was a baby and dressed him up in Red
Sox clothing, just to take pictures and tease my husband. (That did not go over
well with him.)
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| Liam- 5 months. |
My 6-year
old, is a Yankee fan for sure. His first major league ballgame was in the new
Yankee Stadium in 2009, the year they won the World Series. He tells me
regularly that the “Red Sox stink” (although check out who is in the playoffs
this year. Nah Nah).
My 3-year
old is a different story. And frankly the entire Kahlil Gibran poem from “The
Prophet” “On Children” rings true for him. “Your
children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of
Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you, And though
they are with you, yet they belong not to you. You may give them your love but
not your thoughts. For they have their own thoughts…..”.
I
digress…
We
recently asked my little man if he was going to cheer for the Red Sox in the
playoffs. After all this time, I still think I can convince one of them to make
the conversion. But no, instead this is what happened.
His face
looked scrunched up and upset; his brows furrowed and he shot me a look of
disgust. I thought he was going to respond with “No, I am a Yankee fan,” and
laugh it off.
“I like
the Mets! I don’t like the Yankees, or the Red Sox.”
"WHAT????"
I guess this is completely my fault. His first major league ball game was last spring at CitiField. We took the boys because it was family day, the seats were cheap , and overall, we just love the game.
I guess this is completely my fault. His first major league ball game was last spring at CitiField. We took the boys because it was family day, the seats were cheap , and overall, we just love the game.
So my
philosophy has changed. Just be a baseball fan – and don’t throw anything at
anyone – regardless of the New York team they cheer for!
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| At CitField |
