For the glory of Old State

While my intention for my blog is that it generally be a way for me to share about what's going on here in Central America, one of the other Guate Fulbrighters reminded me that not everything on my mind in the next 10 months will be Guate-related. And Cate, your words couldn't resonate more with me than they do in this moment. I fell asleep last night after google searching pages and pages in hopes of uncovering the truth about JoePa's condition. And if I can get a good idea of what's going on at home while I'm here in a country that dedicates 5-10 channels to soccer and .5 to American football, I imagine that all of you are well aware of the controversy over whether Joe passed away last night. I woke up well before my alarm this morning and again reached for my computer to comb through the latest news.

I remember sitting at Iron Hill with two of my F&M co-workers one afternoon just shortly after JoePa had lost his job as legendary PSU Football coach. We were sharing our thoughts, and something that Ryan said hit me in a way that surprised me because even though I agreed with him, I couldn't actually believe I was agreeing with him. He said that he thought JoePa's health would rapidly decline in the wake of the scandal, though, at this point, not too much had been publicized about his cancer. Driving home after that conversation, I realized I wanted to do something that would surely label me as my father's daughter. I wanted to write a letter to Joe. I didn't want to talk about the scandal, but instead I just wanted to say thank you to him for what he's meant to me and my family. Well, time flew by, and I didn't mail anything to Happy Valley. And now that I'm in Guate, it could take two weeks or two years for a letter to reach him, so I'm going to write right here.

Joe,

I write to you as a loving fan and member of the Penn State family. I didn't spend four years in State College as a student- that was my dad- but I spent a lot of time on campus throughout my childhood. I can't recall my first football game, but I can recall my first impression that Beaver Stadium was a special place on game day. Everyone and everything, down to the metal bleachers, felt alive, and so did I. Even after we lost my dad, who was our Penn State alum, we proudly remained a Penn State family. You'll be happy (or perhaps very humiliated) to know that we even hauled a life-size cardboard cut-out of you from our basement to our living room to its rightful place beside our TV every Saturday in the fall. You and what your program has stood for brought us together in good times and bad, whether we were huddled around the same pre-game snack feast or not. There's really nothing more to say than thank you. If F&M doesn't mind, I'm going to continue to share my love for the blue and white with a school that has brought immeasurable happiness to my past and will undoubtedly bring joy to my future. Thank you for being a huge part of that for me and for the thousands of people who hold PSU in their hearts.

I wish you peace and happiness in the same way that you've inspired it.

For the glory of Old State,

Valeri