IanDowiesSashRingtone
Well-known member
There but for the grace of God go I!!!!!
Coming from a family of mixed religion I was allowed to make my own choices as to which team I supported
I was never encouraged by family indeed I was dissuaded from following either of the OLD FIRM sides Alas there is no longer an OLD FIRM since 2012
However as I've stated before on this site as an 8 year old boy brought up in Easterhouse and who's LOCAL team had just become Champions of Europe with total innocence of childhood I was lucky enough to form opinions and make the correct decision
A lot of my decision making in the subject came from attending a Catholic school and being immersed in the Celtic tradition Not through the school curriculum but learning from my peers at school
My only real Celtic minded relative was my maternal grandfather who I seldom saw
My father was from Aberdeen and not particularly interested in football although if pressed would say he had a soft spot for Aberdeen however if asked the question 'who do you support '? his stock answer would be 'my wife and 3 weans'
My paternal grandfather was an avid football supporter Possibly a Rangers fan but this was never disclosed to me even in later life andU was 29 years old when he passed away
Indeed it was him who took me to my 1st Celtic match He never took me to see Celtic again and in fairness I never knew him to go and watch Rangers despite the nearness to Ibrox where he lived
The fact that when he and my grandmother and my father moved to Glasgow from Aberdeen in1948 and took up residence in a flat on Harrison Dr just off Rd a stone's throw away from old Stairway 13 at Ibroc
The fact that he also had a Masonic parchment half in English Half in Latin hung on his bedroom wall may also have been an indicator as to where his allegiances may have lain
It is now my turn to hope tthat history repeats itself
My eldest daighter's man is a HUN but through mutual respect we NEVER discuss our footballing allegiances
Oh sometimes I'll comiserste with him in a rather disguised condescending manner when the footballing Gods plot against his favourites but I tend to temper it with a dose of 'serves you fuckin' right' kind of pity
He and my daughter have 3 young infant sons the eldest just turned 4 years old
When he was born my daughter said to me diplomatically ' we've decided to let Rory support either St Mirren or Patrick Thistle if he shows an interest in football'
Knowing where the conversation was heading I used my personal experience and replied that as soon as he went to school he'd soon make up his own mind as to where his allegiances lie
No pressure or influence would be placed on the wee guy from me but I sometimes think does his father play by the same rules?
So far I've never heard Rory mention being interested in football
Indeed at 4 years old his interest seems to start and end with PAW PATROL. PJ MASK and DANIEL IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
2019 will be the BIG year for him Starting primary school and from what I gather a non denominational one
This is when a little psychological subterfuge may need to come into play on my part
Having a father who is a HUN and going to school with classmates who may have been brought up in HUN tradition he could very well be open to peer pressure away from my seeing eyes
I fervently hope that being made aware of a very successful Celtic team and a rank rotten SEVCO team might in itself influence his decision making If indeed he follows football at all
So my plan is to monitor the situation closely in silent observation but if any HUN tendencies begin to manifest themselves or it becomes evident that he may be leaning towards SEVCO I might have to try and deter such innocent folly
As I said earlier 'there but for the grace of God go I' so I feel it incumbent on myself to give the wee guy as much direction as it takes to make the correct choices
Having 2 daughters of my own this was never really an issue for me before and has raised it's head for me rather late in life however hopefully natural order will lend a hand in him making the correct decisions
I do confessed that it's a rather worrying scenario not knowing which way the leaf may fall but I have been working on my psychological subterfuge just on the off chance that things don"t go as plainly as I"m hoping for
HH?
A wee Celtic kit for Christmas Bill, you know it makes sense.?