Tomorrow is my 71st birthday. I cringe when people complain about their age. Aren’t we all lucky to be mostly upright? Yet I have a tendency to complain about this one. Maybe it’s the odd number. Maybe, as my young grand-nephew, Huey Judd, pointed out to me last Saturday while we were visiting a very cute Pumpkin Patch near Janssen, NE, it is because the next ‘big one’ will be eighty! He’s so smart!
Or not!
Today I accidentally opened up that resolve I made eleven years ago to celebrate my birthday every day. It is a good idea and worth remembering. We should celebrate each day in one way or another. I believe I will start a gratitude journal. That seems a good place to begin along with a daily walk. I have been thinking about writing letters as a method of expressing my gratitude. Hmmm, I may have stumbled onto something.
This weekend is the big 50th Anniversary celebration for the UNL Rugby Club. It has been in the works for quite awhile and there seems to be a lot of interest in participation from the players from over the years. It has been really nice to read the bio’s from so many of the players. It shouldn’t be surprising to me that so many did travel the world with rugby, as players, coaches and refs! They started rugby teams for their children, girls and boys, and continue to support Nebraska rugby.
It’s UNL Alumni weekend and also, and these are the most important events, the two final matches of World Cup Rugby are Friday and Saturday afternoons. It will be fun to watch those games with a hoard of rugby enthusiasts.
I watched the first couple of games when I was in Europe. We watched France beat the All Blacks in that very first game. Weren’t we fortunate to find an Irish Pub that was near our Air B&B in Barcelona? And wasn’t it to our advantage to arrive two hours before kickoff? It was indeed. That was thanks to Jiff who would have settled in for lunch and spent the day if that had been required! The place was packed! On Saturday we will watch the final match between the All Blacks from New Zealand and South Africa’s Springboks. Very good rugby.
I will sit with Jimmy’s buddies and long time friends and we will all comment on how much he would have loved the entire weekend and how much better the stories would be if he were telling them. And how he would have the details about this or that game and this or that party. And he would have led the after party sing along. And we will raise a glass or two to him. More than just myself will tear up. And it will be OK. Sort of.