Feeling Like a Kennedy

Alright - minus the money, and the politics, and the massive compound in Hyannis. I'm mostly talking about the football.

We had a family cookout today and I led a group of 10 to 14 year old boys in a game of touch football. AWESOME.

I've never shared that I played football as a girl. My father told lots of my war stories today as I ran up and down the field with the sqad of kids - hurling the ball, chasing the TD, being as tomboyish as ever. "She was one of the best players on the Attleboro White Hawk team, you know. She ran right over those boys."

You'd believe it if you saw it. I can throw a pretty much perfect spiral - and hard. I know the rules of the game - and I know how to make them work on a smaller field (ie; 10 yards doesn't make a first down, but two completed passes does, and on a small field lateral movement of the ball is nearly impossible). When a fourteen year old boy comments "How long have you been playing for? You're good at this," you know you've got to be decent at the game. What's amusing is that I haven't played in years - I guess it must be a little like riding a bicycle though...

I even got my dad to join us for twenty minutes. He was on the opposing team and kept telling the boys on his side "We CANNOT let them score. I'll never live it down." And, you know what? We scored - and he won't live it down. I feel vaguely like a Kennedy - and an eensy bit like Shannon - who kicked her hubby's butt in triathlonning.