The family in which I grew up wasn’t much for sports. My father had experienced some success as a golden gloves boxer during his time in the Army Air Corps, and he occasionally enjoyed watching boxing on television, but we rarely watched with him. But when New Year’s Day came around we might find ourselves watching the Rose Bowl on television. Sometimes we also watched the Orange Bowl as well. I think we watched the first Super Bowl when I was 14, but I don’t have memories of watching professional football before that. We played baseball, basketball, and football in pick up games as children, and I learned the rules. I went out for basketball in the 7th grade, but wasn’t a very good player. In fact, I was asked to be the team manager, who kept score at games and assisted the coach pumping up balls, picking up towels and other chores. As a high school and college student, I attended nearly all of the home football and basketball games because I played in the pep and marching bands.

As an adult, I have followed sports a bit so that i have enough information and knowledge to engage in conversation with sports fans. There have been plenty of fans in the congregations I have served and I’ve watched a lot of games with them. I have also enjoyed watching high school games when I knew the players. We lived in Chicago for four years and I became a fan of Chicago Cubs baseball and have enjoyed watching the Cubs’ mediocre run over the years. I followed the Cubs pretty closely in 2016 when they won the World Series.

Our son in law, however, grew up in a family of sports fans. His father and uncles are all lifelong fans of the New York Giants football program and, living near Washington, DC, they also have closely followed the Washington Nationals Baseball team since they moved to that city. Michael grew up following the team throughout the season, got to know the names of coaches and players and paid attention to each year’s wins and losses. When he and our daughter married, he had to teach her how to be a fan, and he has been successful. She refers to the Giants as “our team,” puts on her Giants jersey to watch games on television, and pays attention to the season.

So, of course, watching the game was a big deal at their house yesterday. The Giants dominated the Indianapolis Colts and you could hear our grandson yell “touchdown” to celebrate as the game progressed. Like his parents, he has a jersey. He also has pants and a helmet. His jersey, however, was in the wash yesterday, but that didn’t stop him from putting on his helmet and pants and bringing out his football to toss with his father.

Our daughter and son in law have a great deal in common. For example his parents were married the day after we were married, which means that they will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary this summer as will we.That could pose a conflict for the younger generation, but we have already amicably decided that his parents will celebrate on the weekend of their actual anniversary and we will celebrate on a different weekend. The exact day isn’t as important to us as the gathering of family and friends.

There are many, many, other things that they share in common. But there are also some notable differences and some wonderful new traditions that our son-in-law has brought to our family. Celebrating New Years by watching football is one of them. Our celebration wasn’t just football, however. He loaded up the smoker with ribs and the aroma enticed us all day before we finally sat down to a wonderful dinner. There was a walk outdoors, trying to keep up with our grandson on his strider bike. There was a relaxed pace to the day with plenty of time for conversation and a few projects and chores. And, of course, there was time for games, puzzles, stories, and play with our grandson.

Over the years we have celebrated the New Year in a lot of different ways. Because we have been northerners, we have often celebrated with outdoor play, sledding, skiing, and ice skating. I remember once when we were kids it got very cold, but it didn’t snow. That left an irrigation canal frozen very smoothly with no snow cover. We could ice skate for miles up and down the canal. Other years you couldn’t even tell where that canal was for all of the snow drifts. We would dig tunnels into the snow drifts and make snow caves. A real treat for us was the trips to a local hot springs in the winter. There is nothing that matches the sensation of rolling in the snow and then dipping into 100 degree water. I’m not sure that I would be so adventurous these days, but I remember really enjoying our trips to the hot springs. Some years our extended family would gather at the hot springs and take a day trip with a picnic into Yellowstone National Park. Winter is a great time for viewing game in the park and the hot springs and geysers are spectacular when the temperature is very cold.

So it is a little bit strange for me to be celebrating New Years in a place where it is about 70 degrees out during the day and we go walking in our shirtsleeves. I’m not used to summer weather in the middle of the winter. It is, however, a great thing to try from time to time.

We have had so many rich experiences because of the people who have come into our family. The addition of children and then the addition of the people with whom they fell in love has brought great variety and joy to our lives.

When asked about my favorite football team, I used to say “The Bears” simply because we had lived in Chicago. These days, however, I have to say “The Giants” because of a three year old in a helmet. I’ll pay attention to the game next week even though we will no longer be in South Carolina. The things that are important to them become important to me.