In traditional Italian families, Sunday afternoons are dedicated to family dinners. These Sunday dinners entail the extended family gathering to share a home cooked meal and spend quality time together.
Growing up, my extended family and I spent most Sundays at my Nonna and Nonno’s house in Norridge. We always arrived in the middle of my Nonna running around the kitchen, breaking a sweat while she cooked our five-course meal.
Every Sunday, their house had two TVs on: one for Italian soccer and one for football, expressly the Chicago Bears. Sounds of pots clanging, Italian announcers shouting “GOOOOAL,” and the “NFL on Fox” theme song permeated throughout the house.
My Nonno went back and forth from the dining room TV to the living room TV between commercials, in an attempt to watch both games at once.
When my grandpa, uncles, and four boy cousins all wanted to watch sports, us girls were always outnumbered, and so we were forced to watch sports too. At first, I couldn’t care less about men in tights throwing around a ball and jumping on one another. As more Sundays passed, football started to pique my interest. I was curious what “first down” and “pick six” meant. I started asking questions about the rules and scoring. I began paying attention each week and slowly started picking up the fundamentals of the sport.
It didn’t take long for me to realize the excitement of it all. Quickly, I found myself jumping up during scoring plays, high-fiving my cousins. I shared the disappointment my family felt on the Sunday losses (and there were a lot of them). And then, I started watching Thursday and Monday night games on my own. I was hooked.
I went to Training Camp in 2010 and saw Jay Cutler up close. Eventually, I went to my first game: the New Orleans Saints at the Chicago Bears. It was a Monday Night game in December 2014. We lost, but I was just excited to be there. To see it in-person for the very first time.
Sarah (Right) and family (Left) attending 2010 Chicago Bears training camp at at Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais
I went to more games each season, seeing the Bears play the Steelers, the Saints (again), the Panthers, and unfortunately, the Eagles in the 2018 NFC Wild Card game. That’s right, I got a front-row view of the double doink live from the seats at Soldier Field. The worst ending to an electric season. Win or lose, there is something magical about watching your favorite sports team in a stadium filled with other enthusiastic super-fans. You can physically feel the energy and excitement. There is nothing else like it.
Sarah (Right) and Nick (Left) at Soldier Field for 2018 NFC Wild Card game, Chicago Bears vs. Philadelphia Eagles
As I grew as a fan, I started to pay attention to the team during the offseason. I got excited for the drafts. I managed my own fantasy football teams. I even joined the Bears community on Twitter. There, I commiserated with my fellow Bears fans as we watched Matt Eberflus continuously get outcoached, ultimately leading to a handful of losses over the past couple of seasons. Conversely, I celebrated with them when he was fired. The Bears community and I all anxiously waited to see who the front office would hire as the next head coach. I could not believe my eyes when the notification popped up on my phone that Ben Johnson was going to be our next coach. I speak for the entire Bears community when I say I pray that this is the turning point for this organization.
This season, I’ll be going to my first away game: Bears at Commanders. I get to see the rivalry of the first overall pick versus the second overall pick unfold before me in Washington. I get to watch Ben Johnson’s offensive-minded genius at work in person.
Sitting on the couch of my grandparents' house during Sunday dinners all those years ago, feeling unmoved as I watched the blue and orange jerseys advance the ball down the field, I would have never imagined having a personal investment in a football team, that being a Bears fan would leave me so fulfilled. Now, I couldn’t imagine it any other way.
What was your journey to becoming a Chicago Bears fan? Let me know in the comment section.