The Football Season

Gearing Up for Football Season

While the regular season hasn’t kicked off for football, yet, the preseason games are nearly over. So, in the spirit of solidarity with your favorite players (even those on your fantasy team), let’s get in some of our own preseason prep. Beyond getting our remote control finger ready, and dusting off our coveted BBQ recipes that have sat dormant since February, what can we do?

1^st Down: Watch What You Say

Remember whose little ears are around and what you say can and will be used – potentially against you – by your kids.  I’m fairly even-keeled most of the time, but get me in front of a TV with my favorite team playing and I’ll start screaming at the TV (on good plays and bad). I’ve worked very hard to make sure that what I say in front of my kids stays true and wholesome – no matter if it’s something they hear me say during a game or just something they overhear me say to my wife.

2^nd Down: Don’t Lose Track of the Remote

Along the same lines as 1^st Down, remember who is watching the game with you and what they’re taking in through their visual senses. I can’t stress this one enough – – ALWAYS HAVE THE REMOTE CONTROL WITHIN REACH FOR COMMERCIAL BREAKS.  You’ve probably noticed that commercials become edgier each season, and we all know that sex sells. The images of women displayed in beer commercials is not something that I want my daughters to see and feel is the standard they need to live up to; nor something I need to be seeing myself.

3^rd Down: Put 1^st Things 1^st

Prioritize family time (it’s the weekend after all). Be flexible if your wife or kids need your 100% attention in the middle of a game-defining, last-chance, winning drive. If it’s that great a sequence of plays, it’ll get covered on ESPN (over and over and over again). While in the moment it’s easy to get caught up in the spectacle and drama that is football, it’s fleeting – but family is forever. Which leads me to …

4^th Down: Remember That It’s Only a Game

Let me repeat – for my sake as well as yours – IT’S ONLY A GAME. There’s much more to life than the outcome of a football game. Don’t let the game (win or lose) take control of and hijack your weekend, or worse, your family.  It’s a fun and entertaining sport, where you’ll see the ups and downs of the human spirit, the greatness of teamwork, and overcoming odds together. But, once it starts taking over your emotions, your time and your vocabulary, it’s time to take a step back and re-evaluate.

Remember - Focus on the Family!