you're already home where you feel love

we lost. we lost, badly. i cried. it was pathetic. i cried some more. i came home and hugged my mom. i watched the end of the game from the corner of my eye as i posted on facebook about my love for my school and how proud i am to be from that place.

and then it hit me, that i am the luckiest to have this.

on saturday night, at a pep rally, i was part of a roaring mass of people who flew and drove cross-country and took off work to come here, ticket or no ticket, to cheer on their team, because this school means so much them. on sunday night, i danced on the beach with my friends as i ran into so many kids i only see once a year if we're lucky. the streets of south beach closed down as the gold, blue and green swarmed it, and we laughed and we cheered each other on and we marveled how we were here, we made it, we were here.

on monday i donned my number ten jersey and my beads and my lei and we meandered through the stadium parking lot that seemingly was overrun with irish fans. we yelled "don't stop believing" in the middle of a mass of dancers in the backer re-created and hey, it's all true - we are crazy, and we never stop believing,

we were: giddy, nervous, entranced, joyous. we were: shocked, hurting, hurting, hurting. we always are: loyal, strong, true.

so yeah, i'm still hurting. we're all still hurting. but there's always next year, and next year, and next year. and more importantly - we'll always have each other, and we'll always have that place up in northern indiana, where even on the grayest of days you can look up at that glint of gold and know you're okay.

'cause there are stars up above, we can start moving forward.