The Touchdown Surprise
By Retta Lilliendahl
My friend Joyce and I enjoyed attending football games in high school during the early 1960s. We never missed a game, knew all the cheers, and always dressed in our school colors, red and gray.
Dad worked for a very progressive glass company named Kimble Glass Company. They printed all their labels, correspondence, and any other forms needed by the company.
One day, he heard me telling Mother it was my turn to buy the confetti for Saturday’s game. We always brought a bag to throw when our team had a touchdown.
Later that day, he took me aside and said, “I can get you all the confetti you need for free. We have a giant hole punch that prepares various colored papers for use in binders. The next day, he brought home a large tube-shaped plastic bag of colored confetti.
When Joyce picked me up, she was thrilled to see the bag. We won’t run out this time. We arrived early and found our usual spot halfway up the stadium seats. The seats quickly filled on either side, and the band played while cheerleaders chanted our familiar cheers.
It didn’t take long before our team was heading toward the goal line. We each quickly grabbed a handful of confetti, and I secured the bag at my feet. It seemed to take forever to get those last 5 yards, but James Perry, our favorite player, broke through. We jumped up and threw our confetti. It was interesting; instead of a light shower of paper, we saw tiny pellets bouncing off heads and backs. Within seconds, spectators below us were turning our way as they tried to locate the source of the tiny shrapnel. Fortunately, the team quickly lined up for the kick, and the game continued.
When I got home, I told Dad, and he looked surprised and then started to laugh. I said, “It’s not funny!” He replied, “Not now, but someday it will be.”
Retta Lilliendahl, local writer
