His hands are bleeding. So are his knees. He picks up the rope and pulls it taut. He has beaten four others and now, across the rope, stands the last of them, a teammate, a younger teammate, no less, a kid he had taught to lift weights, a kid he had always been stronger than. Heck, he had been stronger than all of them -- but that was last fall, before it all happened. Before the year from hell.
The highlight of the Lions' 2002 season took place Sunday.It ended.Here in a town where football could be king, Detroit's court jesters closed this year's NFL campaign with interceptions, penalties and a pass defense that couldn't stop Frodo Baggins. Oh, and they lost, again, in the closing seconds, when the offense blew a two-point conversion, leaving only one question in Detroit this morning: What happens next? Are they really gonna keep president Matt Millen and coach Marty Mornhinweg?
Let me get this straight. The starting quarterback leaves, and the backup has a good day. The starting running back is injured, and the backups have a coming out party. The starting kick returner is gone, and the backup has huge numbers.Hmm. If we can just get the starting receivers, cornerbacks and defensive linemen out of there, this team might win a few games.
Mitch Albom writes about running an orphanage in impoverished Port-au-Prince, Haiti, his kids, their hardships, laughs and challenges, and the life lessons he’s learned there every day.
