(Almost) Everybody Loves Ray

Over the past week, the sports buzz around Baltimore has pretty much been centered around the retirement of Raven's linebacker Ray Lewis. It's certainly understandable  since many football fans, including myself  consider Lewis the best linebacker of all time. Local fans haven't experienced this kind of thing since Cal Ripken retired from the Orioles back in 2001.

While there are countless Ray Lewis fans around town, I happen to know of at least one person who just isn't feeling the love for the Raven's famous linebacker. That person would be none other than my father. You see, my Dad (known to most people as Erv) never quite got over the whole Atlanta incident that happened in 2000. He's convinced that Lewis is guilty and, just like OJ Simpson, got away with a double murder. You've all heard the story, we don't need to rehash it.

The infamous news-clipping canister

So, not surprising, whenever we touch on a conversation regarding the Raven's at my parent's house, Erv will chime right in with, "Y'all heard about what Ray Lewis did in Atlanta several years ago, didn't cha?" Of course, we'll tell him that we've all heard the story before. But it still never stops him from going to his canister full of news clippings. He'll pull them out and hand them to anyone who is in the room. We've performed this routine so many times, now we just pretend to read the articles and hand them back.

Several years ago, my son (Ken Jr.) was stationed in California during his Army training. After being away for a year or so, he came home for a brief visit. I was over my parent's house waiting for Kenny to arrive. He finally pulls up in the back driveway. When he gets out of his car, I almost fainted when I saw what he was wearing: a black number 52 Ray Lewis jersey! If he walked into my parent's house with that shirt on, I knew we were facing an very unpredictable situation. So I met him in the driveway and asked as calmly as I could, "Ken, are you freggin' nuts?!"

I encouraged him to change shirts, but there were no other shirts to be had. Finally, Kenny said, "This is ridiculous  I'm not changing, I'm going in dressed just like this!"

I didn't know whether to stay outside at a safe distance and wait for the fireworks. Or go inside to intervene if things escalated out of control. I finally decided to swallow my fear and play the potential role of peacemaker.

Now, keep in mind, my Dad has always been extremely fond of Ken Jr. So, as he walked into the living room, initially my Dad's eyes lit up, but his facial impression quickly changed to a look of utter confusion. He shook hands with Jr. and then jumped right on it, "You know, Kenny, you're a good boy. But that shirt's gotta go. Do you know what that guy did in Atlanta a few years ago?" Shaking his head, he retreated to the kitchen where, right on cue, he grabbed his beloved canister of news clippings.

Last spring, I gave a humorous speech at my parents 50th wedding anniversary party (if you want to read it, search for my blog entitled "A Golden Anniversary ). Well, at one point, I slipped in a line about how my Dad loves to spend time watching the Baltimore Ravens and, in particular, his favorite player, Ray Lewis. Although it was a joke, it was still a very risky thing to say. But fortunately,  it was received perfectly as the crowd laughed it up. It was such a ridiculously unbelievable comment that even Erv had to laugh at it!

Actually, my Dad will occasionally watch a Raven's game where, no surprise, he roots for the opposing team. If you ask him who his favorite team is, he will likely say it's the Colt's. He says they're "Baltimore's team". And even though I've explained that the Colts now play in Indianapolis, he still isn't buying it. When I try to tell him that the Raven's are actually Baltimore's team, he says, "That's not true. We stole them from Cleveland!" Of course, I'll then try to explain that's exactly how the Colt's wound up in Indy. Choosing to ignore my logic, my Dad will reply in a frustrated tone, "That ain't the point, Ken! You might think you know it all but I've been around alot longer than you." Generally, this translates into "You're entitled to your opinion. But you're still wrong!"

(When that book/TV series called 'Sh*t My Dad Says...' came out a few years a go, I instantly thought of how it could have very well been about my Dad!)

With all of this being said, keep in mind, this is my father. So, to all my fellow Raven's fan's, please don't be too harsh with any comments or criticism. He's set in his ways and I would never expect him to change. In reality, he has a heart of gold and would give you the shirt off of his back. Just don't expect the shirt to have number 52 on it...

(To keep peace in my family, I'd appreciate it if no one would show this story to my father! Thank you....)

kw