Better Than Christmas

It's interesting to me how families handle different holidays and celebrations. I've mentioned before that birthdays were not a big deal in my family, but they were in Stephanie's. Some families (not mine) give gifts at Easter and Groundhog day and Flag Day. Others celebrate special days with special meals or other traditions.

Well, at the Bailey house my favorite holiday growing up was March Madness. Only recently did I learn that March Madness is not an official holiday. We would all fill out our brackets and watch the 63 games over three weeks. We would cheer for our favorite teams and when we didn't have a favorite playing we'd cheer for the underdog. There were certain traditions that still hold true today like my mom finding Kentucky on the bracket and filling them in all the way to the championship before even looking at the rest of the teams. Hey, she's been right a couple of times!

I remember The Golden Goose and Kentucky's championship in '78, Bird vs. Magic in '79 and the youthful Michael Jordan and North Carolina in '82. Who could forget THE Cinderella N.C. State Wolfpack in '83 beating Houston's Phi Slama Jama or Villanova taking down the mighty Georgetown Hoyas in '85?

I could go on (Keith Smart and Indiana, Michigan's Fab Five, Gonzaga going from a nobody to a perennial tournament team), but I think you get my point. I love basketball, I love theatre and I love the holidays. You could not write a better script. Yup, March Madness, it's better than Christmas.