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It means a lot to me to get to share today's story with you.
CBS' Jim Nantz is one of the most famous sportscasters in America. He also happens to be a friend. And he happens to have something in common with many of us.
See, Jim won't be having the Fathers Day he would have chosen this year. His father, whose also known as Jim, has been battling Alzheimer's Disease since 1995. He lies in a Houston care facility, unable to speak, and appears to not know what's happening around him.
The Nantz family has watched their beloved husband and father slowly fade away since he was diagnosed more than a dozen years ago.
With each passing year, Jim has lost more of the dad he loves. Meanwhile, ironically, Jim's career has only gotten bigger and bigger.
In fact, last year, he had the chance to accomplish something that has never been done before in the world of sports broadcasting. Jim Nantz broadcast The Super Bowl, The Final Four basketball tournament, and The Masters golf tournament in a 63-day stretch. Hard to appreciate how big that is if you're not a sports fan. If you are, well, it's like, "Wow!"
Some folks came to Jim and told him he should write a book about his incredible experiences. What they didn't know was that Jim was aching inside. Sure he appreciated his big opportunity, but his heart was breaking because this was the kind of thing he had always dreamed of doing with his Dad by his side.
Then came the inspiration! What if he wrote a book as a living tribute to his dad? To the man who taught him his love of sports, to the man who taught him about morality and dignity? Now, he was onto something.
That's how Always By My Side: A Father's Grace and a Sports Journey Unlike Any Other came to be.
In the book, you get to learn all about Jim's dad. You also meet so many of the famous people Jim has come across in his incredible sports career. You see how Jim's career of reporting on greatness is really about looking for the greatness he first found in his own father.
So, no, Jim Nantz, didn't have the exact experience he wanted last year when he made history and he hasn't had the Father's Day he's wanted for a long time, but he's doing something that inspires me.
He's creating what he seeks.
As I was out walking my dog early this morning, I was thinking about Jim and a few lines of The Serenity Prayer came to mind.
Grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Jim can't change the course of his father's disease. But he's done what can. He's written a beautiful tribute to a great family man, his dad. And can I say, we are all the richer for it.
A hint, hint—if you haven't found your dad a Fathers Day present yet, this would be perfect. Just click here and Amazon.com will have it to you in time for Sunday.
As for not having the Fathers Day you would have chosen, I, too understand. This will be my first without my dad, Stu, who passed away in September. Not the Fathers Day I would've chosen, but I thank my friend, Jim, for the inspiration to now create something special for that day. I'll get back to you on what I come up with.
Meanwhile, Jim—thanks for the book and sharing your father's grace with all of us.
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