Well, it's been a week since the loss and the incredible anguish hasgiven wayto a subtler but constant pang. My plan was going to go through the stages of dealing with disappointment, but I found that the term "stages" is a bit misleading.
To say Iwent through stages is to suggest I was progressing.Really I was going through different modes. Sometimes there's a progression but then I'd find myself bouncing from mode to mode, repeating many andhaving them come in no specific order. But here are the different modes I dealt with (and will deal with). I'm curious if any of you had similar experiences or felt completely different than I.
Disbelief
When it first happened, I couldn't believe it. They were on the 32 yard line. Theone thing they couldn't afford to do was turn the ball over and that's what happened? No, I refused to accept it.
Agonize Over Last Play
Once I accepted that, yes,that did happen, I just got mad. Mostly I was mad at the last offensive sequence. A bad penalty (twelve men in the huddle) followed by a worse interception. How can that happen? It wassuch a critical spot, how can you not know how many people are going into the huddle? And how can Brett Favre decide to throw across his body over the middle of the field? He could have run the ball! It was so stupid.It cost the Vikings the game and me a chance to see them in the SuperBowl.
Agonize OverEntire Game
Ithought abouthow many other missed opportunities there were in the game. Mainly, there were the turnovers. I meticulously go over eachturnover and it seems like every turnover either cost the Vikings points or gave the Saints points. Just take one of those away and the Vikings win. It's so upsetting.