Maddie's Got Game
"Pop, we are going to play five quarters tonight," Maddie, my eight year old granddaughter, said.
I had just picked her up at school and asked about the time her church league game would start.
"Why would you play five quarters," I asked."It's always four quarters."
She said that the preacher, her coach, had told her that and asked if I thought he would lie. I assured her I thought no such thing and we went on to Chick-fil-A.
When Maddie was about three she was sitting on a couch in our living room playing with a doll and possibly with her imaginary friend, Carly Burton, Jr. It was always sort of hard to know when Carly dropped by. I think he was reality impaired.
My wife was dusting the top of a china cabinet from a stool, moving various glass knick-nacks and candlesticks.
"Nae Nae, you're going to break that," Maddie said.
"No, I'm being careful Maddie."
"You're going to break it," Maddie repeated.
About a minute later my wife was shaking her head and incredulously sweeping up glass fragments.
Maddie's team was ahead by two points and she had not sunk a single basket. In the closing seconds of the fourth quarter their opponents hit one from the corner, tying the game.
Maddie's team has never played in overtime before and I'm not even sure she was aware that there is such a thing. They have only won two games all year.
Maddie scored seven points in overtime to help win the game.....in the fifth quarter.
FIFTH QUARTER???
All I know for sure is that if Maddie ever announces out of the blue that I am going to win the lottery, I'm headed to the nearest convenience store.
