{"id":8036,"date":"2023-07-17T09:58:18","date_gmt":"2023-07-17T08:58:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/?p=8036"},"modified":"2023-09-21T04:37:40","modified_gmt":"2023-09-21T03:37:40","slug":"what-it-means","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/?p=8036","title":{"rendered":"What it Means\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

– Although conventional wisdom holds the seeds of this reborn Arsenal were planted with Mikel Arteta\u2019s hiring in 2019, I maintain the foundation of something much more important was laid on Sunday, 13 March 2022<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Any parent, when asked, will affirm one of life\u2019s great mysteries. How can siblings be so different? As this is not a recitation of biological inheritance, I\u2019ll spare you any discussion of genetic phenotypic probabilities, but, suffice it to say, it never ceases to amaze me just how different my daughter and son are. Maddy has my darker complexion. She is quite intelligent (straight-A student, National Junior Honor Society), is socially engaging (when she wants), and is a conventional beauty. She is also a natural athlete. Gifted with speed, strength, and balance, Maddy stands out on the pitch, in a dojo (she earned a black-belt in taekwondo), or on the waves (she took to surfing straightaway\u2026during her first visit to Mau\u2019i, her instructor called her a natural \u201cgoofy foot\u201d). On the other hand, my younger child, Josh, has his mother\u2019s lighter complexion (colorism is one of America\u2019s many awful legacies from slavery, but, alas, that is a discussion for a different blog) and is more \u201cdistinctively\u201d handsome. Generally more comfortable with a book or his computer, he is wicked smart (testing into one of the top private schools in the country). Josh enjoys writing stories, playing video games, and practicing his computer coding. Although he is a good athlete, he has to work at it much harder than his big sister. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, as a stereotypical father who came of age playing several sports reasonably well (American football, basketball, tennis\u2026even rugby) sports were a huge part of my identity and always on the television. As Maddy began to show promise on the pitch, I poured all my football enthusiasm into her and, later, into Josh as well. Thing is, even as Maddy got better and better on the pitch, I could tell she didn\u2019t (and doesn\u2019t) love the game\u2026at least not as much as I do. She couldn\u2019t (and still can\u2019t) be arsed to watch a match or review her game film or practice on her own time at home. As Josh got older, he, too, eschewed football\u2019s siren song. Imagine my predicament. I wanted nothing more than to share my love of football and the Arsenal with my kids, but that yearning remained unrequited. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fast forward to March of 2022. For the previous couple of years, in addition to playing club soccer, Maddy had qualified for and participated on the North Texas Olympic Development Program team (a program ostensibly designed to identify talented players and provide them additional training and competitive soccer opportunities, in addition to club soccer, it was also another opportunity to separate parents from their hard-earned). She and a couple other girls were invited to join the South Texas ODP team on an exhibition tour to England. Over nine days, the girls would play three matches, attend a Premier League and a WSL match, have a training session with a Premier League club staff, and see all the sights in London and Manchester. Parents and siblings could also join the trip for the low, low, price of\u2026oh nevermind that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trip seemed an opportunity of a lifetime, and I signed-up the family. I also checked the calendar and surreptitiously snagged two club-level seats for Arsenal v Leicester.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tour group arrived at London Heathrow on Thursday, 10 March, and we were on our way to the hotel in Hammersmith. My wife was unsurprised to learn that I had tickets to the Home of Football but disappointed to learn it meant Josh and I would miss Maddy\u2019s first match against the Haringey Girls Academy under 14s. I mean, I was disappointed, too, but there was absolutely<\/strong> no way I was missing the opportunity to see the Arsenal in person. And I was going to take my main man with me? Come on, now.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Sunday arrived, and, after a brief pep-talk with Maddy, Josh and I struck out for the tube and the start of a grand adventure. We made our way onto the Piccadilly Line and exited at the (wait for it) Arsenal station. The vendors were already out in full force, and I bought Josh a hot dog (which he did not<\/strong> enjoy) and a Sprite (which he did) as we made our way to The Arsenal: Highbury Store. We rendezvoused with a mate of my mate in Dallas who gave us a walking tour of Islington where he grew up. We took pictures in front Highbury and had pints at the Bank of Friendship and Che. Josh got the full matchday experience as our guide recounted what it was like \u201cgoing up the Arsenal\u201d with his dad, and we took pictures at all the necessary places. By the way, top man, Rustum. Many thanks for your hospitality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Before I knew it, it was time to get to our seats. Rustum, a season ticket holder, guided us to the proper club-level entrance and then hustled over to his seat. It was just me and Josh, and, I swear, entering the stadium felt like what I\u2019d like to think every Roman was taught the Elysian Fields must be like. Euphoric, bustling, vibrant, and, yet, comforting. Josh\u2019s ear-to-ear grin showed off his braces\u2026cute little bugger. We soaked in the atmosphere, and the Arsenal did the rest. A headed goal from Partey and a Lacazette penalty secured the victory. A lifetime of memories was created. Josh and I sang (of course I taught him and his sister various chants instead of traditional lullabies) along with the \u201cboisterous\u201d club level denizens (Arteta was already having an atmospheric effect), and a stranger seated next to Josh hugged him in celebration. There were no strangers that afternoon. At full time, we leisurely ambled through the maze of hallways at the Emirates, and, when the ushers finally more firmly suggested we make our way outside, we headed over to The Armoury. After buying more gear for the wee lad and his sister and his mom, we took a meandering route back toward Gillespie Road.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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We saw fans being interviewed. We joined in the singing as feral bands of supporters passed. As we neared the Ken Friar Bridge, Josh grabbed my hand. I knew there\u2019d be a day when his hand wouldn\u2019t be so small. \u201cDad?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes, Buddy-boy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday was a good day. Wanna know why?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBecause we won.\u201d I grasped his hand a little tighter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019re right, Buddy-boy. We did.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

MCMBD. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Postscript<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The South Texas ODP team lost to Haringey 6-3, but Maddy scored one and made another. The touring Texans won their final two matches, and Maddy had a very respectable total of four goals and two assists in those matches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Josh has been made-up ever since his visit to the Arsenal. We have watched almost every game together since then, and we played fantasy premier league for the first time this past season. Saka is his favorite (of course), but his general interest in football has blossomed. Whether it\u2019s playing FIFA, listening to Arsenal podcasts, or discussing transfer gossip with his old man, Josh is now my partner in football. AND, his play on the pitch has become unrecognizable. He might not have his sister\u2019s natural athleticism, but his passion eclipses hers. No matter what happens for us as a family, for Maddy, or for Josh, I will always remember that trip, and I will always be grateful to the Arsenal for adding a sparkling facet to this relationship between father and son. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

– Although conventional wisdom holds the seeds of this reborn Arsenal were planted with Mikel Arteta\u2019s hiring in 2019, I maintain the foundation of something much more important was laid on Sunday, 13 March 2022. Any parent, when asked, will affirm one of life\u2019s great mysteries. How can siblings be so different? As this is not […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[23],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8036"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8036"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8036\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8048,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8036\/revisions\/8048"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8036"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8036"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goonerholicsforever.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}