almost an aussie family
tonight geoff went into the city to see his footy team,the magpies, play hawthorn. isaac and i stayed home together on our own and watched a live broadcast of the game (a rare thing that only happens if the match is sold out) . the house was dark and quiet except for our barracking. here we were, an american and an aussie half-breed, glued to the tv and pulling for our team full on while knowing so little.
as the game progressed, isaac and i played a bit of footy ourselves in the lounge room. he wore a beloved magpies footy jumper that our friend greg snagged for him from the church's op-shop. as the pies began to lose, isaac said "i'm soggy now that the pies are losing."
as i prepared him for bed, he said "the pies losed and the pooey team winned." then, as he was using the potty he called me in and said, "look, i made a jellyfish on the wall" as he had missed the toilet completely.
during the winter season, footy is an all-consuming passion in this culture. i relished the chance to pull for geoff's team, to be swept up in the impulse and volatility of the sport, and to watch isaac go up and down with the game. for mother and son who don't fully belong to this place it was sweet to be spectators and fans of such an iconic pastime.
3 comments:
i just want you to know that Isaac is the only kid who has ever made me feel anything less than revulsion at the thought of parenthood. he...is...awesome!
thanks dwain. we have a good time with him. lately, as he's learned to read, speak more clearly and become fascinated with anatomy, we've had some real fun. the other night i put him to bed and he was reading a very simple book to me. he pronounced "milk" in an odd way and i asked him about it and he said to me "i'm reading it with an english accent." then he went on to show me his koala (a ragged puppet that he has slept with for years) and he said to me "let me show you koala's body" and he put his hand inside koala and said "look, no bones."
He's far too cute to be allowed out in public!
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