Of Phillies and Fillies

What is it about championship sporting events that make them among the most memorable and exhausting moments of one's life? I think it is more than the proverbial thrill of victory and agony of defeat. Part of the allure is certainly the roller coaster of emotions but part, I think, is the opportunity to disengage with the "real world" for a few hours and live vicariously in the one where winning truly means everything.

Such was my Saturday. I watched most of the Breeder's Cup races on television as the skies darkened outside my window and a cold, steady downpour began to wash the colorful leaves off the trees. The races were all fabulous and the synthetic track held up well, seeming to favor the European horses who were used to running on heavier turf. But what was the rain going to do to the Phillies game for which we had coveted tickets that evening?

No matter. There were upsets, close finishes and tears of joy in the winner's circle. And more importantly, everyone came home in one piece--perhaps the most important victory of all.

We made the call in my house to leave for the ballpark around 6:00--game time was scheduled for 8:30. My boys wanted to "soak it all in" and how true that would prove to be! We hit traffic of course, but managed to arrive about five minutes before the skies opened. We wandered around the concourse, staying dry, searching for the perfect souvenir and something to eat and then we settled in for what we were sure was going to be a postponement.

We stood, (it was too wet to go anywhere near our seats) with 49,000 other crazy, red wearing Phillies fans, munching pretzels and looking at our watches. 8:00 turned to 8:30 to 9:00 to 9:25 and the rain kept coming. And then, at 9:25 a cheer went up as the grounds crew came out to remove the tarp--in perhaps one of the heaviest downpours of the night. Son #2 remained very doubtful that the field was playable.

But playable it was and so at 10:15 PM--my bedtime--we settled in to watch one of the greatest sporting events I have ever attended. To be honest, I had no idea what time it was until around 1:20 (about the 8th inning) when, with the score tied, the thought entered my mind that the Phillies might not win. And I could not fathom how they could do that to 49,000 plus people who stood in the rain for 1 1/2 hours and stayed awake until 1:30 in the morning! Seriously, the mood in the stadium was so upbeat until then--about 20 minutes from the end of the game, that it was the first time I felt a damper (no pun intended) on the night.

And that is when it hit me--how hard we fall for these teams or athletes or horses of ours that we lose all perception of reality--and how this escape--this few hours of intense disengagement from stock market crashes and job insecurities and mounting bills and health issues and psyche matters is so important to our national sanity, that it is almost worth the price of losing.

The Phillies pulled it out, of course, and if they hadn't I would have sobbed and cried and pulled myself back together because in the scheme of things, it really was just a game. But the fact of the matter is--and I bet anyone who took home a Breeder's Cup trophy over the weekend feels the same way--when you win, it is so much more than a game.

It is a gift. That you can unwrap again and again in your mind. And right now, I am savoring it.....