Monday morning I said to Jeff, "Wow! The media doesn't care at all about the other coach. All they can talk about is this Harbaugh guy". That is when I realized that both coaches were named Harbaugh and they are brothers. My thoughts immediately went to their poor parents.
Who do you root for? What do you wear? How do you stay neutral? How do you support one son and not make the other feel that their pain or their triumph is unimportant? How do you not cringe as you watch your boys compete on such a large stage? The fact is one will win and one will lose. As a parent, that is painful!
I did some looking around and found some interesting information. Probably you knew this already but Jim and John are 15 months apart. I have boys 15 months apart and I can tell you that there is some competition going on there.....always has been. My boys have an older brother that they swear has "big brother power". Jim has a son, Jay, that works for John (and what is with all the J names?). Their parent's, Jack and Jackie (I'm not lying, look it up...more J names), raised them to look out for one another.
Some quotes from the following article illustrate this point.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2013/02/03/super-bowl-harbaugh-family/1888797/
"the brothers gushed about how much they've learned from their mother that, as John said, "We were to have each other's back no matter what,"
"John said. "We are fiercely loyal, there's no doubt. We all say that. Not just of one another and we always have been. That's definitely not ever going to change. We will continue to be fiercely loyal and protective of one another, but also of our teams."
These are remarkable people. They've raised two successful sons that care for one another even in the midst of their extreme competitiveness. A clue to how this came about was exhibited last season. On Thanksgiving Day the two brothers met on the battle field coaching their respective teams. The Ravens beat the 49ers.
"After leaving an office in the stadium where they watched the game — in private and emotionless — the first locker room they walked past was that of the Ravens.
"We've all experienced that excitement of victory-guys jumping up and down, the smile on John's face. They were just ecstatic. ... Then you realize that you're not needed here," Jack said. "You walk across the hall, and you went into the 49ers locker room and you walked and you saw the players walking about — that look in their eyes, that look of not being successful and coming up short. We opened up a couple doors and finally saw Jim all by himself in this room, just a table and a chair. He was still in his coaching outfit. His head down in his hands and you looked into his eyes and you realized that this where you're needed as a parent."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/03/jack-jackie-harbaugh-losing-son-coach-visit-first_n_2608879.html
Here is one more article. This one reveals, in Jim Harbaugh's own words, what the winning brother said to the losing brother at the end of the game under the falling confetti. Get a tissue.
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nfl--harbaugh-family-tree-branches-out-to-comfort--celebrate-jim-and-john-in-emotional-super-bowl-locker-room--072418426.html
I admire Jack and Jackie Harbaugh but I do not envy them!!
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