Cubs. Deacs. Hope Springs Eternal.

My Dad..with a vintage Wake Forest Hat, c. 1981

The Cubs won the world series this week, after 108 years of losing.  I am not really a baseball fan at all, yet found myself cheering hard for them, and was sort of unsure why their run was speaking to me so deeply.
And then, my brother texted me this article, and wrote this message: "Dad, you, me, sports...."

And the article sums up much of my feeling about my Dad, who passed away from Lewy-Body Dementia just over two years ago.  You see, I miss him all the time, but it hurts the most when Wake Forest wins a game.

My Dad was THE BIGGEST WAKE FOREST fan ever.  He never missed a game, and was not above organizing our vacations, and family events around Wake's football or basketball schedule.  He was the kind of fan who listened to the official Wake radio broadcast, while he watched the televised game on mute..."because the coverage is better."And as time went by, and I began to find my own interests and muses - Wake Forest remained a constant that my brother, sister, and I could always return to connect with my dad.  So, no matter what I was doing in my life, I always kept an eye on the progress of the Deacs.

Me...Wake Shirt (of course) c. 1981

And when they got a big win, which is rare...I immediately got on the phone to my Dad, brother, and sister to celebrate together.  No matter how close the Deacs came to blowing it...and they always came close..he would answer the phone saying, "Never a doubt in my mind, Big Boy.."

Man, that man loved the Deacs.

His love for Wake taught us to how to cheer for the underdog - a lesson that I embrace, and have attempted to pass on to my own children.  That there can be glory in defeat, grace in victory, and hope springs eternal.

So, now that he is gone, I find myself caring even more about Wake.  And though I haven't lived in Winston-Salem in 20 years, I feel a responsibility to make sure that I take my kids to at least 1-2 Wake games per year...because that's what he would have wanted.  The Deacs are the tie that binds in our family.  And I am grateful for it.

So, congrats to the Cubs - America's loveable loser.  It is something else to witness the underdog get his day in the sun.  And of course, I think of my dad - because when the underdog wins, our family wins...together.