“Wait!
I Didn’t Say Hut!”
High school football season is in full swing, and
last night I attended a game as an extraordinarily proud Band Mom. My son is a
high school senior and is the bands only tuba player and as if that’s not reason
enough, his sister is his band director. As I walked in with the band, I could
feel a collective sense of walking into the Lion’s Den, since we were as my
husband so eloquently said, “out-manned, out-classed, and out-gunned.” (Yes, we
lost 66 – 8). The band members knew they had to play their hearts out – and
they did, especially in the fourth quarter when you could see the spirits of
the team disappear like a balloon spiraling into the sky.
The best part of last night’s game didn’t take place
on the field, but rather all around me. From my seat, I had a birds eyes view
of six little boys engaged in their own imaginary football game. I have no
doubt, that no boy played harder on the field than those six little boys who
conducted their game on the outside of the fence near the end zone. They were
out of the way of the foot traffic so they could play without being interrupted
and play they did! Sweat ran down their grubby faces, flushed red with
excitement and determination. At first I thought they had a mini football, but
then I realized their football was imaginary. No matter. Still, they jumped
into the air to catch it. They cuddled it next to their chests. They held it
with their arms tucked close to their sides. They could not have protected that
imagined ball any better than a real one.
As I watched, it occurred to me that these five or
six year olds knew a great deal about the game. First, they set up their game
so they were three against three. They faced off and crouched down in football
stance. The team with the imaginary ball, had a quarterback waiting for the
center to hand him the ball which he threw to the third team member who ran
like his hair was on fire through the line of three boys who made up the
opposing team. If the boy was successful and broke through his opponents, he
held up his hands to catch the imaginary ball. That’s when all hell broke
loose. Boys bounced off boys – rolled around on the ground – jumped up in the
air and attempted to tackle each other. One little fellow with black spikey
hair and a face full of freckles had the unfortunate handicap of blue jeans
that were too big for him, making it necessary for him to run with one hand
holding up his pants, his batman underwear in full view. He wasn’t the only one
with wardrobe malfunctions. Another little fellow whose hair was what my mother
would call “wringing wet” had on a t-shirt that had been grabbed and pulled on
so much that the neck had stretched out and hung off his shoulders like a
poncho.
Back and forth they scrambled for that imaginary
ball, calling plays, “Hut one! Hut two! Hut three! Hut Hut!” The only time I
saw any unsportsmanship-like conduct was when a little boy with curly red hair
yelled, “Wait! I Didn’t Say Hut!” It was clear to me he expected them to stop
and get back in formation so he could call his play and when they went right on
scrambling for that imaginary ball, he stood still and screamed, “I said WAIT!
I DIDN”T SAY HUT!” It was about this time in the game when they were joined by
four little girls who decided the boys needed cheerleaders, and they were
perfect for the job. These cheerleaders who were also about five or six years
old had imaginary pomp poms which they waved in the air over their heads when
they cheered, “GO! Boys! GO!” I wasn’t
at all surprised when the little boys ignored the cheerleaders with imaginary
pomp poms and went on playing with their imaginary football.
Just before the game was over, I saw the parents
come to collect their weary warriors. I watched them leave with moms and dads,
oblivious to the actual game that had taken place on the other side of the
fence. They had played for over two hours with an imaginary football in a game
that was as real to them as the superheroes decorating their underwear. No
doubt they would dream sweet dreams where they shouted, “Hut One! Hut Two! Hut
Three! Hut Hut!”
