Sneakers, September, and Springsteen

     Before every young basketball player wanted to be like Mike, I wanted to be like Dan.  Back in the '70's when Nike and Converse were the popular sneakers of choice for most basketball players around town, Danny Trant was the only one I could see who was wearing adidas.  And if the best basketball player around was going to buck the popular trend, then so was I.  To this day, adidas remains my sneaker of choice.  And to this day, each time I pick up a new pair of adidas, images of Danny tearing up the court in those white sneakers with the three red stripes flood my mind.

     
     September has always been one of those defining months of the calender year.  It lets us know that the summer days are coming to an end and our vacationing days are over for awhile.  September tells us that school is back in session and trips to the beach are long gone until next year.  Whether it's you as a teenager or as a parent, early mornings bring with it the traffic of school buses and cooler temperatures.  And at the risk of exposing myself as someone who has watched a "chick-flick" or two over the years, I can't help but feel similar to Tom Hanks' character in You've Got Mail when he says that still, as an adult, "the fall makes me want to go out and buy school supplies."

     But over the last ten years, the month of September has come to mean a lot more than just the end of summer and the start of football season.  Almost as if a starting horn sounds the moment every calender in America turns from August to September, so begins the 9/11 reminders and commemorative tributes, on television, in print, and in conversation.

     September 11, 2001 will forever be a date of infamy for every American.  But for the town of Westfield, every September 11th of every year is an especially sad day because of the losses of Danny, Tara Shea Creamer, and Brian Murphy.  The words "We Will Never Forget" may at times ring a little hallow when read on a sign on television once a year, or on a faded bumper sticker of a car you see drive by on occasion.  For the town of Westfield, though, Danny, Tara, and Brian's names and stories are heard and told about again and again, many times throughout the year, because each was simply a wonderful person.  But also because Westfield is the kind of town that embodies how these three so passionately lived: with a lively spirit and with pride for family and community.

     
     September is also the month when Westfield lacrosse players of yesterday and today get together for one last game of the extended summer season.  That's when I know that before the colder and darker days of fall and winter make their way, one more game still needs to be played before I can officially consider summer to be over.  One more game, between old friends and old teammates, where the tradition of Westfield lacrosse once again solidifies itself as second to none in western Massachusetts.  Where guys can reconnect, to play, tell stories, and recount and certainly exaggerate past glory days of achievement. 

     Will Pierce, who will again be making the trip from his home in San Francisco, sums up the day:

     "Players come from all over just to play one game one day in September.  Nowhere else do you find that kind of loyalty or respect amongst players of all ages from one town.  That's what keeps our Westfield lacrosse tradition alive." 

     
     When I make a much shorter drive to the alumni game, Bruce Springsteen will of course be blasting from my car stereo.  That is certainly no surprise--listening to Springsteen before a game is as much a part of my mandatory pregame preparation as stretching, popping a few ibuprofen, and lathering up with Icy-Hot.  But like that flip of the calender, Bruce's album The Rising is the album that I always listen to throughout the month of September, and will certainly on this day.  

     Written in the aftermath of 9/11, Bruce masterfully was able to take the overwhelming emotional complexity and hurt of the 9/11 events and transform it into a wonderful work of emotional and spiritual catharsis through his words and music.  And amongst the themes of loss, faith, hope, heroism, and transformation, The Rising always returns to what is central and essential to the human spirit:  the bond of community, friendship, and admiration amongst friends and family.  From the continuance of individual friendship in "Further On Up The Road", to the connection to hometown roots in "My City's In Ruin", to the celebration of fun and laughter in "Mary's Place", Bruce manages always to offer up hope and strength through our personal and human connections to others, and to our community.

     
     After our alumni game on September 17, and after our "Mary's Place" type party, the summer will officially then come to an close.  The warm weather sport of lacrosse will end and all our sports-related focus will be on the New England Patriots.  The tenth anniversary of 9/11 will be over with, and guys like Will, Jeff Beach, and Anthony Spagnoli will return to their homes hundreds and thousands of miles away.  But what September will bring back again next year and every year after that, are continuing memories and connections that began long ago growing up in a town that embraces and cultivates a special pride in community and lifelong friendships .

    

     Mike Flynn put it best when after last year's game he said, "Westfield is like one of those towns out of a Springsteen song.  the only thing guys like more than leaving is going back again."  Poignant words from a best friend and fellow Springsteen fan.  Too bad for him that our friendship will be put on hold for a couple hours during the game.  That's when I'll be embarrassing him on the field once again like I've been doing repeatedly for the last thirty years.