Giant Game, Giant Man, Giant Memories

The other night my brother Joey was putting his youngest child, Bella, to bed and decided to lay down and talk and cuddle before she fell asleep. A minute later his oldest, Robert, climbed into bed with the two of them and my brother was in his glory. And then came Jojo, the middle child, and he looked at the three of them in Bella's tiny bed wanting so much to join them but not seeing any room. My brother said, you want to get in on this don't you? Get in, there's room for all of us. The four of them in Bella's little bed, cuddling and talking.

They were talking about family, specifically my parents, and I think Robert said, I wish I knew them. And Bella, so smart, says, you do know them. Pounding her little hand on my brother's chest, she said "they're in here." I could cry just thinking of her knowing that. She's only 7. She said we know them because daddy does things that they taught him and now he does those things with us. They're right here, again touching Joey's chest, his heart. I'm sure my brother was tearing up, he's a mush too. But I love that Bella understands that, taught her older brothers something so important. We may lose our loved ones but they are with us, inside us, forever.

Joey is very much like my father Bo. Bo was a giant man, he married my mom after my biological father died. He became a father to me and my five siblings, raised us. Joey is his biological son, but I never felt any difference, I was his daughter. Again a giant man.

Joey is a giant man. He's a wonderful father and even before he became a father there wasn't a kid that wasn't just drawn to him. He's 42 and when you watch him play with his kids, his nieces and nephews, he's one of them, he plays, he's silly. I have a friend and years ago her son had a friend who was deaf. They all came to my brother's house one day for a BBQ and to swim in the pool. This kid was in love with my brother in five minutes, constantly asking my friend when he could go back and see Joey again. He saw the giant man in Joey and he met Bo too. Just like Bella says.

This is a giant weekend for Joey and his kids.

On Saturday Bella receives the sacrament of Reconciliation. When I was a kid it was called our First Confession. What sins a 7 year old has to confess, I don't know, but I guess it's a start in learning about sins, about people who don't know right from wrong and keeping Bella on the right path. It's an important event in Bella's young life.

And on Sunday Joey is taking his sons to the New York Giants play-off game! The boys are so excited but I don't think it compares with my brother's excitement. When he told me he got the tickets, he talked about two major sports moments in his life that live in his heart in a giant way.

My parents took him to a Wagner College basketball game. By the way, another great thing to do in Staten Island. Wagner College has some great sport events, as well as terrific shows from their theatre department. It's a beautiful campus and the school spirit is infectious!

So my parents took Joey to a game without having tickets. When they got there, the place was packed and there were no tickets to be bought. Joey was so upset and a man came up to him and said, I have three tickets. Joey ran to my father and said a man has three tickets! Bo went up to the guy and said how much? The man said nothing, enjoy the game. My father tried to give him money, what can I do for you, you made my son's night, please take something. But the man just wanted to give. There are so many good people out there, we all have to remember that.

Joey said the game was amazing. Wagner lost but it didn't make any difference to him, again the spirit inside that gym was something you couldn't help but feel. It's a giant memory in Joey's life, a wonderful fun night spent with his mother and father.

Years later, in 1986, the year our mom passed away, my father had season tickets for the New York Mets. It was the Mets' year, they won the World Series and Joey says remembering going to those games with my father is giant, fills him with so much happiness and he's flooded with memories of the smallest details.

Sunday is Joey's, Robert's and Jojo's giant day in more ways than just going to a game. This will be a memory that will always be so fresh in their minds they can play it like a movie in their head, they will feel themselves being there, they will smell the smells of the day, feel the cold, the smallest details will come alive whenever they think of this game.

Giant Game, Giant Man, Giant Memories.