Friday, March 19, 2010

the madness


Yesterday, I watched 15-seed Ronald Morris come close to picking off #2 Villanova. A bit later, I saw a buzz-beater shot that put #13 Murray State over #4 Vanderbilt. The day was full of little upsets. Old Dominion over Notre Dame. Saint Mary's over Richmond. But the evening brought the most incredible game. #14 Ohio University rolled over #3 Georgetown. They flattened those guys, rolled them up, and mailed them back to DC in an envelope. It was awesome.

I watched basketball yesterday not only because I love the NCAA tournament, but also because I wanted to escape Martin's bad behavior. Because he had a mild fever two days ago, he could not attend school yesterday. My husband and I took turns during the day trying to keep him occupied, but also rested up from his bout with a cold. Martin was not interested in our offerings. All he wanted to do was watch movies. It was a showdown.

I sometimes wish the world was seeded like the NCAA tournament. Martin would be the #15 or #16 seed, battling a list a foes. The #1 seed of going through a day like a normal kid. The #2 seed of fingernail clipping. The #3 seed of haircutting. The #4 seed of going to a party with friends. The #5 seed of eating vegetables. As we witnessed in the tournament yesterday, it is possible for the 5s, the 4s, and even the 3s to be overtaken by the underdog.

I want the seedings because then I and others could know that it is a huge accomplishment when Martin does some of those things that are normal for everyone else. "Martin eating peas?" we'd ask, "Well, I guess we have as much chance at that as UTEP over Butler. And we all know how that went." "Fingernail clipping? Well, I guess a 15 has taken down a 2 only four times in history, but remember how awesome it was when Richmond beat Syracuse the year I graduated from high school? It could happen again. You could clip Martin's nails successfully and without incident. Just believe."

"Going through a day like a normal kid?" A 16 has never, ever defeated a 1. I shouldn't get my hopes up. That doesn't mean it can't ever happen. But if it does, I'm storming the floor.

4 comments:

  1. this is really great, jen. -rebecca

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  2. While I know more about sports than my husband I am afraid basketball analogies (along with March Madness) are lost on me.

    What came to mind when I was reading the post was... we all want to veg in front of the TV sometimes, why can't Martin have a day of movies? Unless there is only one TV, then I say mom's sanity gets first priority. (maybe I'm marking myself as a lazy, bad mom) MBS

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  3. My son is 11 and on the spectrum also. Sometimes he tells me that he needs to be alone. I've come to realize that he needs this time to regroup and prepare for the day ahead. He also loves watch movies.

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  4. Delightful, delightful post! Doug

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