".... the Purple Way"

"I want it the purple way!" was always Hannah's bedtime comment about her blanket. She had three ballerina bunnies and the one with the purple tutu always had to be closest to her face before she could close her eyes for the night.

 Some things never change. Circumstances may change, but the core of who we are rarely does. Sunday heard Hannah again exclaim, " Ale Viola!" (Viola is Italian for purple) She was cheering for the AC Fiorentina soccer team with 50,000+ fans. She got her purple close to her face!  In fact, she, Randy and I were immersed in a sea of purple. And once again, confronted with passion from another pursuit. 

AC Fiorentina won the game, 1-0 and everyone left happy, except for the few Sampdoria fans who were behind a 20 meter high security fence. Yup, that's right. A corner section of the stadium reserved for visiting team's fans was fenced off for safety. We sat at mid-field, about 10 rows up and had a blast, listening to the cheering, clapping and singing of the passionate soccer fanatics. It was a visual feast with numerous flags and banners waving (especially the end zones) and fans jumping in unison to certain chants.

There are a few differences with Italian responses to the game versus Canadian responses to a hockey game. For instance, when the home team has a scoring chance or breakaway, no one stands. They stay seated. Fans always clap after a scoring chance, even if no goal is scored. When the opposing team is pressing for a goal, home team fans whistle in unison to distract or hassle them. In the end, the fans did give AC Fiorentina a strong home field advantage which resulted in a win, the purple way.