A Day That Sports Didn't Matter!

It's funny when you reflect back on memories in your life and remember some of the monumental days you have lived through. I remember that Tuesday morning probably more clearly than any other morning that I can remember. Sure I remember the morning of my wedding and the morning that my daughter was born, but those were days that I knew were coming. I was prepared for them. I was not at all prepared for September 11, 2001. Nobody was. It was probably the only day in my life that I can honestly say I didn't think about sports once.

I was in Tampa, Florida because a few days earlier my grandmother had been rushed to the hospital and she had just had heart surgery. They had put in a pacemaker and she was going to make it. I flew in on Thursday, September 6 from Ontario, California. When I landed I wasn't sure if I was arriving to see my grandmother alive and well or if I was flying out to see her funeral. Thankfully by Sunday, my grandmother was out of the hospital and it appeared that she was going to be alright. I was scheduled to fly home on September 11, 2001 at 2:00 p.m. EST in the afternoon. It was a flight that I never got to take.

I was sleeping on the floor on an air mattress when my father's wife came running in saying, "Hurry, hurry. Turn on the T.V." It was exactly 9:00 a.m. EST. when I reached for and grabbed my glasses and turned on the television. It must have taken me a minute or two to wipe away the cobwebs and focus on the building that was burning before my eyes, when all of a sudden I saw a plane flying into the picture and into another building. Immediately I was awake and stunned at what I had just seen. I'll never forget what my father's wife said next, "Looks like you're not going home today."

I remember that it was the middle of the pennant chases and that the Yankees were going for their fourth World Series title. I remember that it was my second season of fantasy football. I remember that I had just been married two and a half months earlier. I remember that the only thing I cared about that day was getting home to my wife. I could care less about anything else, including sports.

As you all know, days passed and sports resumed. Fantasy football went on. The Yankees actually became the team that everyone rooted for that year. Firefighters were finally acknowledged as being the bravest, most selfless individuals that God has ever created. Sports did help lead the healing. On this the eighth anniversary of that fateful day, I realize that we are still healing. Sports is still part of my life but I have gained perspective on it's place in my life. And finally, that I was, in fact, going to Florida for a funeral, it just wasn't for who I expected it to be for.

God bless all of the families of all the people that died on that tragic day.

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