brushfire"This, yes, this, it was always like this." -Stanley Koehler
REFLECTIONS OF AN EMPTY NESTER
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My son played his last collegiate lacrosse game on April 27. His lax career began as a fifth-grader under Coach D and with club and summer ball under Coach B. He and three of his high school teammates went on to play in college. Each took to the field for his final regular season game on the same day, three at the exact same time. For my husband and me, our son’s last game marked the end of an era watching our kids play sports. We made lasting friendships through their teams, from Little League A ball to Ivy League soccer, coordinating carpools, co-hosting team pasta parties and post-game tailgates, chatting in the stands or at the stats table and bonding over shared victories and losses with fellow parents. We traveled around the state, country and even internationally — does Canada count? — for tournaments. We cheered teams on in rain and snow and temperatures from below zero to 104 degrees (Texas is hot in September). With our son and two daughters playing two and even three seasons of multiple sports — baseball, basketball, cross country, hockey, lacrosse, soccer and volleyball — throughout middle and high school, spilling into summer with camps, tournaments and college showcases, athletics were a major focus of our family life. Jared’s four years with the Emerson Lions provide the perfect coda to this epic chapter. It was the team with the smallest roster in the league, but the biggest heart; the fewest subs on the sidelines, but the loudest bench. The best way to capture the spirit of this team is through the seniors who began the journey with our son freshman year. There’s Cam, fast, skilled and selfless, more a play maker than showman. Leading in assists, he was the one most likely to feed the ball at just the right moment. Unfortunately, he was unable to play senior year due to a back injury and was truly missed, but he continued to support the team from the sidelines, making the trip to cheer them on for their final game of the season. Then there’s Bailey, starting goalie for three years. He was relegated to the bench senior year when a freshman recruit joined the team. This happens often in college sports. Hard work, dedication and commitment may be overlooked when “someone better” comes along. Loyalty may not always be rewarded, but Bailey showed it anyway. He proved as valuable a teammate on the bench as he did between the pipes, supporting the players and coaches and cheering on teammates from what became affectionately known as “the bench mob.” We’re sure to hear more from Bailey — literally — as his already promising career in sports broadcasting flourishes. I have a special fondness for Marshall. Not only is he a redhead like my son, with a gentle smile and calm, steady demeanor, but we hosted him one night when he and Jared drove across the country together to spend their fall semester in Los Angeles. He played long stick defense, a difficult, thankless, yet critical position. He was a solid presence on the field and team, demonstrating leadership by example. Fernando started freshman year as a talented face-off specialist. Like Bailey, he lost this position to a new recruit, in this case, one who turned out to be one of the leading face-off players in the league. Fernando forged a new role for himself as a defensive middie — a grinding and often thankless position requiring grit and endurance, but rarely the glory of goal scoring. He and Jared shared an experience together off the field — an improv class that took them out of their comfort zone to another level of teamwork and camaraderie with a different cast of supporting characters on stage. I feel fortunate our son had these fine young men not just as teammates, but friends. It was the team chemistry — the blend of leadership and loyalty and support for one another — that made Emerson lacrosse such a meaningful experience for Jared and source of inspiration for his biggest fans at home. The final whistle may have blown on their lacrosse careers, but we will continue to cheer on “the boys” with whatever’s next.
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Mary Anne BrushJournalist, fiction writer, wife and mother |