If you’ve stopped by to check out the photo recap of
Friday’s NFL Gridiron Greats Hall of Fame dinner, please know that I had every
intention of posting that today.
But forty minutes before Scott and I left for the dinner – as I was
squeezing into my Spanx, Scott summoned me to the computer to show me this:
And this…
And, finally, this:
And suddenly, a jovial post about Mommy and Daddy’s night out
didn’t seem so appropriate.
The pics above are of the Pontiac Silverdome, the former
home of the Detroit Lions, where Scott played his entire NFL career. What made
this stadium so unique is that the roof was comprised of fiberglass panels that
were supported by air pressure inside the stadium. Although the roof has always
looked white to the naked eye, the stadium obtained the name Silverdome due to
a silver-like reflection caused by the sun.
The quick and dirty is this: A 2012 storm shredded the roof, and then, on January 3 of this year, the roof was deflated after city officials said there was a small tear. Everyone knew that there was damage, but because the Silverdome had been closed for years, no one knew just how bad it was. These just-released, never-before-seen photos document what remains.
The quick and dirty is this: A 2012 storm shredded the roof, and then, on January 3 of this year, the roof was deflated after city officials said there was a small tear. Everyone knew that there was damage, but because the Silverdome had been closed for years, no one knew just how bad it was. These just-released, never-before-seen photos document what remains.
Make no mistake, Friday’s dinner was fun, and we were all
in good spirits because, ultimately, the night raised much-needed funds for
former NFL players who will now be helped by the Gridiron Greats Assistance
Fund. But as Scott and I mingled in the event’s VIP lounge, there was an eerie
undercurrent of melancholy among Scott’s former teammates: “Hey, Scott…did you see them? Did you see the pictures of the
Silverdome?” asked one former player.
Everyone was shocked.
There is so much history at the Silverdome. So much. It was the site of the last
Detroit Lions playoff win (a game that Scott played in); it hosted a Super Bowl,
a World Cup, and Led Zeppelin’s then record-breaking concert. It was also where I cheered on my high school
alma mater, John Glenn, during the football state finals when I
was a junior back in 1994.
Scott’s response to all of this has been remarkably calm. I
mean, I didn’t expect him to curl up into the fetal position and cry. But I
just thought he would react differently. But then he told me this: “I still
remember how loud it was in there on game day – I’ll never forget what the crowd sounded
like. No matter what happens to that building, it can’t erase the memories…nothing
can erase the memories.”
So it got me to thinking: Have you ever experienced the
loss of something – an item, a home, anything tangible – that you felt was so
significant and great? How did you deal?
Before you comment, please know that come hell or high
water (which is a poor choice of words right now, I know), I will post my recap
of the Gridiron Greats Hall of Fame dinner this Friday. I promise. I can’t post
it Wednesday because I’m launching a giveaway for a hair product that I’ve been
using since 2005, and I gave my word to the vendor several weeks ago that the giveaway would
commence on that date. Trust me, if you care at all about what your hair looks
like when you get up in the morning, then you’ll love this product.
But back to the question at hand: How do you cope with the
loss of something great?