This is where I want to be

10:12 a.m. ET

This morning, as I pulled into the entrance of the Pro Football Hall of Fame campus – George Halas Drive -- I realized I forgot where I was supposed to park my car. Frustrated, I drove around in circles for a few minutes until I found the designated location, which had I read the memo, would have been a much easier endeavor. See, it’s that time of year when virtually all the staff parking is overtaken by formidable-looking festival tents. The impressive clean white canvas structures not only reminded me that I don’t have a parking place, but also instantly reinforced a feeling that something very exciting is about to happen. The exciting something is the Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival.

In just a couple of days thousands of football fans will fill the tents and every other square foot of the Hall of Fame campus. Individually and collectively they come to celebrate the addition of six new Hall of Famers. Sure, after so many years, I sometimes forget what a privilege it is to be a part of such an exciting event. But in a matter of hours as the throng of appreciative fans and 80-plus returning Hall of Famers begin to slip into town, the fatigue and cautious worries that are a necessary part of the Enshrinement Festival planning, miraculously transform into a sense of pride and anxious anticipation. In the words of Hall of Fame Coach Marv Levy, “Where else you rather be than right here, right now.” Parking spot or not, this is where I want to be.