With the opening of the college football season, I’ve been thinking about our son Peter even more than usual. Although we both loved all kinds of football—high school, college, and pro—college was easily our favorite. The title of my new book, He Made Us Better: A Story of Faith, Family (and Football) is no fluke. Football was an integral part of our lives.

I have a flood of great and precious memories, a few of which are told in the book. But basically, watching football with Peter, whether at home, at a game, of wherever, was a blast. Here are a few of the reasons why.

It was something we both loved. If you really enjoy an activity, in most cases you’ll enjoy it even more if you’re with someone else who enjoys it too. If not, when your team scores a touchdown, it’s pretty hard to give yourself a “high five.”

He always had an interesting take on things. Peter was passionate about football, and had some strong opinions. With Peter, it was pretty much black and white, not many greys. For example, we were both Purdue Boilermaker fans, and Peter really didn’t like Notre Dame. I’d say to him, “Yeah, but when Notre Dame’s not playing Purdue, they’ve got a great tradition—Knute Rockne, the Four Horsemen, “win one for the Gipper,” the Golden Dome. And it’s right here in Indiana”—to which he’d say, “I don’t care. Their fans are obnoxious, and they don’t know when to shut up. I can’t stand Notre Dame.”

It helped us through some tough times. During his life, Peter logged a lot of time in the hospital. And he and I spent a lot of time watching football there. It became kind of an “out-of-body experience” for both of us. In a very real sense, it transported us out of the world of hospital gowns, IVs, and beeping monitors and into the stadium of whatever game we were watching.

Better than Siri. Pete had much more time than me to keep up to date on what was happening in the various worlds of football. Which meant that if I wanted to know something, all I had to do was ask. He took great pride in his expertise in this area, and if he didn’t have the answer on the tip of his tongue, he’d take it as a challenge to see how fast he could find out.

Wake up call. On Saturdays when we’d be going to Purdue for a game, I’d get up early, and while he was still in bed, I’d help him with his morning routine . Then at some point I’d say, “Do you think it’s time for Mom to get up?” Then we’d play the Boilermaker Tailgate CD full blast. She wasn’t crazy about this, but as usual was a good sport. Peter loved it!

He helped me get more sleep. Peter was pretty much of a night owl. Sometimes we’d be watching a really good game, but it was getting late. I knew that I could go to bed, and first thing in the morning, he could tell me the outcome, highlights, and analysis.

He knew how to operate the remote(s). Peter was much more tech-savvy than me, and when we’d watch games in his room, I could never figure out how to work the remotes (actually, he had two—so he could get more sports commentary from different sources). I’d try, and inevitably fail. But Peter could always figure it out.

We were making great memories. Earlier I referred to his many stays at the hospital. I still remember the Monday night game in 1987 where we saw Bo Jackson run wild, rushing for 221 yards  against the Seahawks, and bowling over Seahawks linebacker Brian “the Boz” Bosworth. And another game where the Bills’ Jim Kelly threw three interceptions in the first half, only to come back and throw four TDs in the second half to win the game. Over the years, we did many “instant replays,” where one of us would say, “remember that time…”  It was great fun re-living those moments for both of us.

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Peter’s not with us anymore, but the memories of the many great times we had watching football together are indelibly chiseled into my soul. In a very real way, when I watch a game today I can still feel Peter’s presence, and feel close to him again. I know he’d be excited about how Purdue played last weekend. Or how his beloved Southwood HS Knights are doing this year. It’s a wonderful feeling.

I am so thankful for those times, and so glad I was able to have that time to do it.

Are there any memories you need to be making?