When the Cubs lost over 100 games in the 2012 season, my dad promised me that if they ever went to the World Series that we would go to a game. At that point in time, the Cubs going to the World Series seemed like a dream that would never actually happen.
I was born in Chicago and raised on the North Side until the age of 12. My dad owns multiple bars within a block of Wrigley Field. I remember going to Cubs games as a little girl. I also remember being disappointed when they lost, which happened more often than not back then. I was still a Cubs fan in 2005 when the Sox won the World Series. I have never been to a Major League baseball game that wasn't a Cubs game and I have only been to two outside of Wrigley Field. Now I am not claiming to be one of those diehard Cubs fans who cried when they found out the Cubs were going to the World Series, or who watches every game every year. I'm not even claiming to be a fan of baseball but I am a fan of the Cubs and I love the energy that Chicago has when their teams win. I have gone to two Blackhawks Stanley Cup Winning Parades and it's incredible to see the whole city come together.
When I found out that the Cubs beat the Dodgers and were going to the World Series, I was living in L.A. I was so excited and I wore my Cubs hat out all week. Everyone looked at me like I personally made the Dodgers lose but I didn't let that dampen my mood. I booked tickets home to Chicago for the weekend games at Wrigley. I'm not going to lie, it was a bit nerve racking when they lost the first game but I kept faith. That faith was easy to hold on to when they won Game 2 but really hard to keep when they lost Games 3 and 4. I went to Game 4 and I can tell you Wrigley was a somber place to be but no one gave up. People kept mention what had happened in the NBA Championship games earlier this year, when the Golden State Warriors blew a 3-1 lead and lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers. That was all the people of Chicago could hope for.
That takes us to Game 7, or what I like to call the most stressful game of baseball that I have ever seen. The first few innings were fine. We were winning and I thought we were actually going to pull this off. The curse would be broken. Then we got to the extra inning and I could barely breathe. I started to question whether or not we would win. Plus there was the rain delay, which just made me more nervous. But when the Cubs came back for the 10th inning, I could feel it. We were going to win. I will never forget the look on the face of the hottest man in baseball, Kris Byrant, his smile as he through the last out, securing the first World Series win for the Cubs in over 100 years.I couldn't believe it. It was a dream come true for everyone from the North Side of Chicago.
I am so proud to be a Cubs fan then, now and forever.
