Getting to know my new friend tonight was (excuse the cliche) like pulling teeth. Mr. Sanchez is his name. I never found out his first name so we'll just call him "Mister."
Mister sat next to Isaiah and me at the Suns game along with his beautiful, yet jockish teenaged daughter. As they sat down next to us I greeted them with a friendly "Hi. Aren't you excited about tonight's game?!" "I guess so. It was HER idea to come here," was Mister's grumbly reply. This is going to be a tough one, I thought.
Isaiah and I are very energetic at games. We scream, we clap, we holler, we bang those obnoxious orange clacker sticks they give out at the door. Mister and his daughter sat. Isaiah and I sang along to the songs they play to rile up people just like Mister and his daughter. Mister and his daughter sat.
I asked Mister's daughter if she plays a sport. With a sparkle in her eyes, she told me that she plays basketball and softball at her high school. If she's lucky, she wants to get a scholarship to ASU, play basketball there, and earn her degree in sports medicine and be a physical therapist for a pro team. She is looking forward to her prom this weekend because her team got all matching dresses and their dates are the boys basketball team. Mister's daughter is fun!
For three hours, Mister offered nothing to the conversation. He was bored and probably would have rather been at home watching TV.
I am sad for Mister's daughter, but I'm not going to judge. Maybe I'm the parent who has too much fun with my child, but in the end, my child will remember this game fondly while Mister's daughter will go on with her life, having lost an opportunity to see her father as a pal.
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