no reason to celebrate

Ordinarily, most Fridays are reserved on my blog for Football Fridays - a day to share some of my favorite tailgating dishes. But after the events this week at Penn State and the sobering reality of the alleged tragedy that transpired there, I find nothing about football this week worth celebrating.

I will watch football this weekend, of course. But as a mother of two young boys, my heart is heavy over this in ways I can't express on this blog. If even a small portion of the allegations are true, this story speaks to the deep levels of depravity that we as humans can sink to.

And the bottom line is this - this story is not about me, you, our feelings about what's happened or how the days following the news of it have unfolded. There are real people - the victims - at the heart of this story whose lives have forever been changed in ways that most of us can't even begin to imagine. Any other story told is just fuel for our curiosity as humans. It should be our humanity and concern for those who have been victimized that we really focus on.

This weekend may be a time that you come together, cheer for your team and enjoy the company of family and friends... and I hope that you will. Hold tight to those you love and cherish their safety. But never lose sight that it's only a game. The real game of life - our actions (and inactions) towards others - is the only one worth winning.