Heartbreak

By 11:00 a.m. every day, Rai, your eyes glaze over and you begin to fade. Despite the fact that game time for the World Cup Final was 11:30, today was no different. You were down for your nap by 11:15. You missed the first half. You missed the first half hour of the second half. Since we don't have a t.v., I sat watching the game at the corner laundromat. As the second half neared it's end, I looked out the windows, hoping to see you and your Mom approaching to catch the action-packed final minutes of the game.
And, there you were! You had hurriedly awoken from your nap, asking, "Mom, did I miss the game?!" When Mom told you that the score was nil-nil and that you could still catch the final minutes, you quickly threw on your Netherlands orange and ran down to the laundromat.
The second half ended, still scoreless. As a family, we sat on the edges of our plastic seats, washing machines and dryers rumbling and tumbling in the background. On this day, unfortunately, our gasps, groans and cheers were not enough. Spain pulled off that final minutes shocker in extra time. We were both heartbroken. This was no way for this game to end. You agreed with me that a Netherlands loss in a shootout would have been a more bearable way to face this defeat. Mom, however, was happy.