SPOIL SPORT!

I am a spoil sport. I have been accused of it, I admit it, guilty as charged. Relegated by age and physical condition to enjoy only spectator sports, I am a fan of basketball, baseball, and even football, provided I can watch from the safety of my seat in the stadium or my comfy living room. I have watched hockey and rugby a few times, but they have become too rough for me. The sight of blood alarms me to no end, and an ambulance parked at a sporting event chills me to the bone. I have not encouraged my son or my grandsons to participate, fearing that academics might take second place to sports. All three have played team basketball, while Nana cringed at flying elbows, and falls, not even to mention unsportsmanlike behavior. I have been regaled with the possibilities of getting big scholarships and handsome salaries as a professional, but I, for one remain unconvinced. Okay, so I am a scaredy-cat. especially where my kiddos are concerned. My husband had to persuade me to allow my son to get B-B guns and motorbikes, well past the age that his friends aquired these coveted possessions. Needless to say, I said, "I told you so", when he got a broken arm playing baseball and got hit by a car on the dirtbike. (MEN! And their toys!) I told the above so you would understand how unsettled I became to hear that my son, now a mature adult, had made an effort to conceal the fact that he had gone on a hunting trip this week. From me, at least. He told me that it was because he knew I would worry. I did not tell him that I worried anyway, thinking he was being evasive because he was going to a doctor for tests. Overactive imagination. He said, "I killed a deer." I thought to myself, "Is this my son who cried his eyes out at eleven when he shot at a bird and accidentally killed it?" I said "Oh, no! You killed Bambi?" I implied, "How could you?" He knows that I cannot bear to kill anything, even an ant. He asked me if I thought it was wrong to hunt, even if the meat was dressed out for food. I told him, "No, the Bible says it is lawful to eat meat, except for creepy, crawly things." The dietary laws of the Old Testament were given for the good of mankind, in a time when there was no refrigeration and sanitation. I think they still may be a good thing to follow. Some were ethical, such as not stewing the meat of an animal in its mother's milk. Noone likes a good hamburger, steak or poultry more than I, yet I do feel we would be better off to be vegetarian and legume eaters. I fear that hormones and chemicals used in animals are threatening to our health. I told my son that I read recentlly that pregnant women and children under six should not eat venison killed with lead shot. I asked, "Do you enjoy killing a helpless animal?" He said, "Of course not, even though I am pretty good at it. a lot more get away than I kill, and I must admit that I was glad I did not get that big buck with the huge rack." He said, "It is more about the camraderie, friends telling tall tales at the lodges." I knew in reason that was the true reason for going. Since he lost his father, I feel he yearns for male com- panionship more than before, even though his father had an aversion to hunting similar to mine. I even at that time felt a little smug pity for "hunting widows" because their husbands were absent so much indulging in that sport. I realize that without hunters the game would overpopulate and become a nuisance or a threat, but I still cannot help but be repulsed by this sport. Some may consider it akin to bullfighting, gamecock fighting and such. Am I being hypo- critical to feel this way, while still eating meat? I do not eat fish, but I enjoy fishing. (I rationalized that Jesus had fisherman disciples, and fed the multitude with loaves and fishes.) I just do not like fish, but I think it is a healthy choice to substitute for meat. I have always prided myself with the idea that my children could tell me anything. The lines of communication were always open, and we shared good news along with bad. I do not want them to keep secrets from me because I am judgmental. However, they know how I feel about certain issues, and if it is important enough to them to disregard my wishes, then more power to them. I raised them right, Now they are adult and make their own choices. But , Please, God, guide them and direct their paths.