A couple of weeks ago, Mark informed me that I might want to attend the homecoming football game against Northwestern for no other reason than that he would be PLAYING ON THE FOOTBALL FIELD! Not as an athlete, but as a musician, and not as a bad musician, but as a musician with the New York Philharmonic.
It was a hard decision in all honesty. I was post-op just a couple of days, and I wasn't feeling too strong. However, like so many other instances where I am propelled to do something because of my love for my kids, I thought to myself, "When will I ever see this again?" I made the decision to go.
It was nice. It was just the three of us: Ethan, Mark and myself. I like to think of us as the three die hards. The ones who will sit through anything to see a Michigan football game. And blame it on the steroids, but I was in tears several times throughout the game, and so was Ethan. But he wasn't on any steroids ;-)
It was surreal, sitting in the stadium on a gorgeous Fall day with my two boys, both of whom attend Michigan. It felt like some kind of vision that I had had years ago, and now it was coming true.
Mark had a final dress rehearsal with the marching band and the members of the NY Phil that morning on the practice field, so after dropping him off (to save him the pain of finding parking), Rebecca, Ethan and I headed downtown to M Den to buy some goodies. You know, it's a crazy thing. You can never walk into that store without walking out of it with something that you never knew you needed :-)
Too, the boys needed haircuts. I found a barber in Westgate Shopping Center, so while they got their hair trimmed, Rebecca and I did a bit of window shopping. And we all went in the bookstore. Again, can't walk in....
Before the game though, I wanted to take the kids to Dexter Cider Mill. I have a vague memory of visiting the mill weeks after my dad's death, and it holds a weird kind of comfort for me to go there. It wasn't a fancy place at all. In fact, it was pretty much just a store to buy all the goodies that were made in the back rooms of the building. However, it smelled like heaven, and the goodies tasted even better. After buying our doughnuts and a gallon of cider, we didn't even wait to get in the car before we sampled everything. Oh boy, was it TASTY!
I really had no idea what to expect from the little that Mark had told me about his performance. We knew that he needed to leave the game at the end of the first quarter to get ready. Like I said, during that first quarter, I really was overcome with emotion, just sitting there with my boys. It was one of those perfect moments in time. And I was completely jealous that Mark had been one of the lucky few to score a free pair of M Go Blue sunglasses!
Mark left, and Ethan and I watched the second quarter. When the band finally came on the field during the half, to our disbelief and awe, so did Mark (and several other musicians from the brass sections of the music school). He wasn't part of the band, but instead played in the front with the members of the New York Philharmonic. I could hardly believe the whole thing.
If you watch the video, Mark is standing with the group of people in front of the band. He is on the left end with khaki pants. Turns out, the cameraman was right next to him, so he made it onto the Jumbotron too. And you may wonder why Ethan ends up cheering at the beginning of the video? In true Kennedy tradition, Mark found us up in our seats and gave us the nose scratch to let us know that he saw us. It's moment like these that I love my family: despite the bigness of the moment and being on the field, Mark thought about us and gave us our own moment. It's great to be a Kennedy!
And Ethan, being the elderly, stewardly brother he is, ran down as close as possible and grabbed some pictures too.
Of course, Mark took his own...FROM THE FREAKING FIELD!
And this is where I had one of those Ah Hah moments.
John has made this comparison before, but I don't believe I have ever recorded it.
Musicians are like athletes. They start young, they spend countless hours practicing everyday, they compete against each other to be the best, and they must learn to perform under pressure.
While athletes are paid untold millions to play, the musicians can hardly make a living. It's a sad sort of affairs when you really think about it, and yet, I felt insanely proud of Mark in that moment. He was having an incredible experience, playing on the field as a bonafide musician, and it felt like all those years of practicing were all worth it.
Of course, I would like to leave this post with that thought, but as Mark left the stadium gate to head back to us after the performance, he ran into three guys who just happened to be taller than him....and he was completely star struck. That's right--Michigan basketball players.
I'm guessing that no one will ever stop Mark for a picture because he's a tall hornist.
*sigh*
It was a hard decision in all honesty. I was post-op just a couple of days, and I wasn't feeling too strong. However, like so many other instances where I am propelled to do something because of my love for my kids, I thought to myself, "When will I ever see this again?" I made the decision to go.
It was nice. It was just the three of us: Ethan, Mark and myself. I like to think of us as the three die hards. The ones who will sit through anything to see a Michigan football game. And blame it on the steroids, but I was in tears several times throughout the game, and so was Ethan. But he wasn't on any steroids ;-)
It was surreal, sitting in the stadium on a gorgeous Fall day with my two boys, both of whom attend Michigan. It felt like some kind of vision that I had had years ago, and now it was coming true.Mark had a final dress rehearsal with the marching band and the members of the NY Phil that morning on the practice field, so after dropping him off (to save him the pain of finding parking), Rebecca, Ethan and I headed downtown to M Den to buy some goodies. You know, it's a crazy thing. You can never walk into that store without walking out of it with something that you never knew you needed :-)
Too, the boys needed haircuts. I found a barber in Westgate Shopping Center, so while they got their hair trimmed, Rebecca and I did a bit of window shopping. And we all went in the bookstore. Again, can't walk in....
Before the game though, I wanted to take the kids to Dexter Cider Mill. I have a vague memory of visiting the mill weeks after my dad's death, and it holds a weird kind of comfort for me to go there. It wasn't a fancy place at all. In fact, it was pretty much just a store to buy all the goodies that were made in the back rooms of the building. However, it smelled like heaven, and the goodies tasted even better. After buying our doughnuts and a gallon of cider, we didn't even wait to get in the car before we sampled everything. Oh boy, was it TASTY! |
| Pure class, right? |
I really had no idea what to expect from the little that Mark had told me about his performance. We knew that he needed to leave the game at the end of the first quarter to get ready. Like I said, during that first quarter, I really was overcome with emotion, just sitting there with my boys. It was one of those perfect moments in time. And I was completely jealous that Mark had been one of the lucky few to score a free pair of M Go Blue sunglasses!
Mark left, and Ethan and I watched the second quarter. When the band finally came on the field during the half, to our disbelief and awe, so did Mark (and several other musicians from the brass sections of the music school). He wasn't part of the band, but instead played in the front with the members of the New York Philharmonic. I could hardly believe the whole thing.
If you watch the video, Mark is standing with the group of people in front of the band. He is on the left end with khaki pants. Turns out, the cameraman was right next to him, so he made it onto the Jumbotron too. And you may wonder why Ethan ends up cheering at the beginning of the video? In true Kennedy tradition, Mark found us up in our seats and gave us the nose scratch to let us know that he saw us. It's moment like these that I love my family: despite the bigness of the moment and being on the field, Mark thought about us and gave us our own moment. It's great to be a Kennedy!
And Ethan, being the elderly, stewardly brother he is, ran down as close as possible and grabbed some pictures too.
Of course, Mark took his own...FROM THE FREAKING FIELD!
 |
| I couldn't be more jealous that he actually got to come out of the tunnel! |
John has made this comparison before, but I don't believe I have ever recorded it.
Musicians are like athletes. They start young, they spend countless hours practicing everyday, they compete against each other to be the best, and they must learn to perform under pressure.
While athletes are paid untold millions to play, the musicians can hardly make a living. It's a sad sort of affairs when you really think about it, and yet, I felt insanely proud of Mark in that moment. He was having an incredible experience, playing on the field as a bonafide musician, and it felt like all those years of practicing were all worth it.
Of course, I would like to leave this post with that thought, but as Mark left the stadium gate to head back to us after the performance, he ran into three guys who just happened to be taller than him....and he was completely star struck. That's right--Michigan basketball players.
 |
| I'm sure Ethan could tell us exactly who these guys are. All I know is that, for once, Mark said he felt short ;-) |
*sigh*
Thanks Mommy for posting about this! I literally coulnt have said it any better myself(:
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