It is rivalry week once again. This week is the weekend of the SDSU versus NDSU game. The Jack will head to Fargo for one of the biggest games on their schedule.
Here is a great picture of my family with the Dakota Marker last year. It is heavy. It is super cool. And we won it last year.
The Neills did not start out as an SDSU football family. We had been to games as students and games once we were married, but after attending the first game at the new stadium we thought we could possibly be a football family. Football season does occur at a bad time for a farmer who makes a living growing corn and soybeans. SDSU has a great stadium, but sports in climate-controlled indoor facilities are always a plus. We looked at the negatives but still decided to take the plunge and become a football family.
Being a season ticket holder for the first time, you often go in blindly. You may not really know what the view looks like from your seats. You may not know one person around you. You may not realize how far the bathroom may be from your seats. But as you go to each game, you develop relationships with those around you. You let them know if perhaps you may not be at a game. You talk about your hopes for the team. You talk about your families. Slowly you build relationships with your fellow fans.
Not only did we decide to be a football family, but we also decided to become a tailgating football family. Tailgating brings with it food and an even deeper bond with those around you. You invite strangers (and even people from other teams) into your area to share eats and conversation. There may be yard games, there may be bets made, and there are definitely lots of laughs. We have developed many positive relationships due to our dive into the world of college football.
As we attended more games, we began talking about getting seats that may be a little better. Maybe we can be a little further down or closer to the 50-yard line. This year we decided to not only move seats but move to a different tailgating location. I didn't think too much of it until we headed to the Iowa game and saw the group that tailgated next to us for 5 years. They asked us if we were ready to see them again this fall. I then got just a sick feeling in my tummy. I had to break the news that we moved spots.
Just when I thought I was done breaking hearts, the first home game of the season came. How do I break the news to our seatmates? They had put up with five years of us. Mind you Khloe was four when we started sitting there. They put up with pom poms in their faces, a little girl having potty emergencies, and a super fan who could sing "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "Ring the Bells" word for word by the time she was five.
As John and Khloe went to our new seats, I headed over and broke the news to our "friends". It was at this time that I realized how impactful these types of relationships are as they handed me a newspaper article they had been saving all year for us. After some small talk, I quickly found my way to my new seat through tears. We had both made an impact on each other. Even though we only saw each other for five (and sometimes more) games a year, there was still that connection.
I sit back during this rivalry week and realize all the great relationships I have made in my life...not just at SDSU games, but in other areas. My experiences in different schools, different work groups, and different stadiums have sparked relationships both big and small. Relationships that make me feel comfortable, relationships that support me in my personal life, and those that support me in my professional life. Are there a few rivals out there? There always are. But even with rivals, you can find a relationship built upon respect. Your briefest interaction with a person can be large for them and for you.
Putting yourself out there to begin new relationships can be scary. But what new thing isn't? Take the plunge and develop relationships with those around you. Share your interests. Share your struggles. Share your accomplishments. Just like picking season tickets, you may not know what you are going to get, but putting yourself out there could result in something special.
Find the time to gather with your seatmates. Find the time to talk about work. Find the time to talk about things that have nothing to do with work. Find the time to talk about life. Take the time to start building those relationships around the lunch table...around a desk...around a fire pit...or around an old camper that Gebhart Painting spruced up.
Go Big. Go Blue. Go Jacks! 💙🐰💛
No comments:
Post a Comment