She Loves Earl
In 1977, or thereabouts, I told her, Earl came to town. Now, the truth is that Cici has heard enough of my stories to know that the best way to handle them is to let her eyes glaze over. She hung in there with me on this one, though, so I continued.
It was one of those autumn days when there was a stiff breeze blowing in the Ozarks, and a jacket was more than recommended; it was required. Neither side could gain an advantage, and the game was winding down. The Razorbacks were leading on the strength of two field goals, if memory serves me correctly. The Longhorns had nothing but zeros on the scoreboard, but they were driving toward the end zone where I was seated.
The big man had been contained all afternoon. But I can still see all too clearly pitch-out to him as he swept wide and took the ball in full stride. He was running straight toward me, and toward the remaining linebackers in red jerseys and white pants. They couldn't stop him, but their bodies got tangled up in his legs. When his body came down hard about ten yards short of a touchdown, the stands on which I was sitting shuddered from the thud as he hit the ground.
This was Earl, I told her. He became the first Heisman Trophy winner from the University of Texas, and later was enshrined in the National Football Hall of Fame. In all honesty, none of this meant anything to Cici. But she loves Earl anyway. She proved it today.
Last night before I told her the story of Earl, I opened a package of his hot sausage links. Do you want to try this, I asked her. No Papa, I am not hungry, she responded. I steamed two of the sausage links anyway and heated two hotdog buns (whole grain this time) in the toaster. I put one of the links on one of the buns, put a little catsup on it, and took it to her. The smell got to her. Okay Papa, I will eat this, she told me with a big smile. She ate it and apparently loved it despite being subjected to my story about Earl.
When I came home this evening, only one sausage link remained in the package. She may not care about football legends, but she sure as heck loves Earl's sausage!
It was one of those autumn days when there was a stiff breeze blowing in the Ozarks, and a jacket was more than recommended; it was required. Neither side could gain an advantage, and the game was winding down. The Razorbacks were leading on the strength of two field goals, if memory serves me correctly. The Longhorns had nothing but zeros on the scoreboard, but they were driving toward the end zone where I was seated.
The big man had been contained all afternoon. But I can still see all too clearly pitch-out to him as he swept wide and took the ball in full stride. He was running straight toward me, and toward the remaining linebackers in red jerseys and white pants. They couldn't stop him, but their bodies got tangled up in his legs. When his body came down hard about ten yards short of a touchdown, the stands on which I was sitting shuddered from the thud as he hit the ground.
This was Earl, I told her. He became the first Heisman Trophy winner from the University of Texas, and later was enshrined in the National Football Hall of Fame. In all honesty, none of this meant anything to Cici. But she loves Earl anyway. She proved it today.
Last night before I told her the story of Earl, I opened a package of his hot sausage links. Do you want to try this, I asked her. No Papa, I am not hungry, she responded. I steamed two of the sausage links anyway and heated two hotdog buns (whole grain this time) in the toaster. I put one of the links on one of the buns, put a little catsup on it, and took it to her. The smell got to her. Okay Papa, I will eat this, she told me with a big smile. She ate it and apparently loved it despite being subjected to my story about Earl.
When I came home this evening, only one sausage link remained in the package. She may not care about football legends, but she sure as heck loves Earl's sausage!
Who can forget about the “Taylor Rose”. What a legend he was, getting over 9,000 yards rushing in his career. He went on to become one of the best running backs that the Houston Oilers ever had. Those were the days.
But who would expect a little girl from China to know and understand a sportsman like Earl. I can say this, you are teaching her like I would teach my son, good ole sausage on a bun.
Next, you can start teaching Cici about racing and salad dressings along with the Oscar winning actor who donated over 250 million to charities. After all, I am sure she’s watching over your food consumption like a hawk since momma’s not around to do it.
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