When the Cubs win the World Series

Reminiscing while watching the Home Run Derby.

I have few complaints about my life. My past has had its flaws, just as my present does and there is no doubt my future will, but the positive moments and experiences have far outweighed the negative ones. But I would hate to die without seeing the Cubs win the World Series.

Don't let anyone say that it's just a game.
For I've seen other teams and it's never the same.
When you're born in Chicago, you're blessed and you're healed.
First time (every time!) you walk into Wrigley Field.

I don't remember my first Cubs game. I wanna say this is because I was too young. Born and raised to bleed Cubby Blue, I'm pretty sure this is the case. Unlike my dad, who got to go to countless games as a child (when tickets were affordable), I only get the chance to go to a few games a season, but I think that makes Wrigley Field an even more magical place. Just ahead of the racetrack, Wrigley is my happiest place on Earth.


Our heroes wear pinstripes; heroes in blue.
They give us the chance to feel like hero's too.
Whether we'll win, and if we should lose

I never really had a "hero" growing up, but if I had to choose one person I admired as a kid it was Ryne Sandberg. His name was close to mine, and he was the star player when I first remember being a Cubs fan. But I really looked up to the whole team. And today I do as well. The Cubs have not won the World Series in 101 years, but they still draw more fans across the country than pretty much any other team out there. There is something to be said about both the team and their following.

We are one with the Cubs, with the Cubs we're in love.
Yeah hold our head high as the underdog.
We are not fair weather but foul weather fans!
We're like brothers in arms in the streets and the stands.

Anytime I meet someone new, one of my first questions is "Cubs fan?"
If the answer is yes, there is an instant bond. Whether you grew up in Wrigleyville or South Dakota, if you're a Cubs fan, you are a Northsider.

There's magic in the ivy and the old scoreboard.
The same one I stared at as a kid keeping score.
A world full of greed I could never want more.

It's really the simplest thing two people could bond over, baseball. It's more interesting than the weather, the season is the longest of all professional sports (leaving only a few months of irrelevance), and everyone has a unique opinion about their favorite team. No wonder baseball is synonymous with apple pie regarding being "American."

And here's to the men and the legends we've known.
Teaching us faith and giving us hope.
United we stand and united we'll fall
Down to our knees the day we win it all.

As Americans, Chicagoans and Northsiders, we share this superiority complex: we love winning and hate losing. As Chicagoans we are used to winning. Look at the Bulls in the 90's; we had, arguably the best basketball star to ever play the game. But as Northsiders we have been losing for over 100 years now, and we continue to pack the stands and back our team. We have had some great talent come through our town but nothing resembling the likes of MJ. We had a great #23 of our own, a #10, a #14 and my personal favorite, #21. But these numbers are just few of the greats who have played for the Cubs over the years. We never had a Jordan, but we've always had a solid team: a group of talented players who knew how to play the game as a team.


Yeah Ernie Banks said, "Oh let's play two."
Or did he mean 200 years?
In the same ballpark, our diamond, our jewel.
The home of our joy and our tears.

Speaking of good, old #14...
The thing about the Cubs is that they are more than a team. They often refer to the Cubs as an organization. Once a Cub, always a Cub. Ask any player in the MLB. Everyone wants to be a Cub. Best fans, best park, best city. Sandberg coaches in the farm system, Santo is as much of a legend as a broadcaster as he was a player, and countless vets scout, report or coach for this team. The Cubs are a family.

Keeping traditions and wishes made new.
The place where our grandfathers' fathers they grew.
A spiritual feeling if I ever knew.
And if you ain't been I am sorry for you.

Even Cards and Sox fans agree, Wrigley has a feeling about it. Everyone should see a ballgame on the Northside once in their life. It is the only place where a seven dollar Old Style is justifiable.


And when the day comes, when that last winning run,
And I'm crying and covered in beer.
I'll look to the sky and know I was right.

Being a Cubs fan is a privilege and a responsibility. You have to be born or married into it. And from that point on, you're cursed for life. But you'll never know a better time than getting wasted in the bleachers with your fellow Cubby Blue. And when that fateful October night finally rolls around...

Someday we'll go all the way.
Yeah! Someday we'll go all the way.

...It will have all been worth it.