Southern through and through

I wrote this letter to submit to Ellen before the Super Bowl:

I grew up in Louisiana, raised a Southern belle by Southern natives. My father has been a die-hard Saints fan since before I was born. I never did enjoy football in my youth, but I knew I was supposed to root for the Saints and for LSU. My mother and I would never watch the games, but we smiled and cheered when they won, and patted dad on the back when they lost.

We moved to Texas when I was 11, and while my father’s sports obsession grew to include the local teams, he never stopped crossing his fingers for the Saints.

I’m now 26 and married to another fan-of-all-things-Louisiana. New Orleans has been very important to our love story; we took our first vacation there, we honeymooned there, and our wedding favors were gold beads!

My father cried when the Saints won last week, and I expect he will cry again during the Super-Bowl, win or lose. I am excited for the big game, even though I’m only just learning to appreciate the game of pigskin. This game will mean the world to the two most important men in my life, and my mother and I will have a blast making beignets to celebrate.

Our love for this team reminds me of a sports team from my very favorite book series: The Chudley Cannons. While the Saints are a much better team with a much better record, the unfailing faith and love Ron Weasley shows them is a true comparison of the Saints following in my house. Win or lose, we wear our fleurs de lis proudly!