Butterflies and the National Anthem

Last night I went to the last home soccer game for my daughter Becca. She is a senior so this was her last home game. It was an amazing game and she ended up scoring the winning goal which is always a great way to end a career. She is also the youngest of my three children so this was my last home athletic event period. I stood before the game with my baseball cap over my heart as the Star Spangled Banner was piped over the loud speakers. It struck me that for over two decades I have never heard the National Anthem without pre-game butterflies dancing around in my stomach. Every game I played and then every game my kids played I have been a little nervous. It actually made me very grateful. How amazing is it to live in a country where my memory link to the National Anthem is an athletic event. It is not linked to insurrection or fear or any of the countless other emotions that other National Anthems are connected to. In this wonderful country the last note of the Anthem is not followed by a gunshot but by a "Let's Play Ball." And so it has been my entire life. The election is now exactly two weeks away. Every four years emotions run high and there is talk of the imminent collapse of the country if the candidate of the opposing party gets elected. I have been all over the world. There are places where fear runs deep and strong at election time for very good reason. I am not saying that here in the United States it does not matter who you vote for. It does. But I also know that no matter who is elected on November 4th I won't be hiding in my basement on the 5th worried that death squads are coming. In December in every gym in America there will be dads listening to the Star Spangled Banner with their ball caps over their hearts hoping their child will be the hero. I had that experience last night and it was the beauty and the strength of this country that gave me the freedom and it made me not only proud of my daughter but proud of my country and thankful to God.