GO TERPS! (wait...what are Terps?)

Something that I was thinking about while I was working in the Tyser Tower suites during the Homecoming Football Game this weekend, was how much parents influence their children to like things that they might not even understand. While I don't necessarily think this is always bad, it's just an interesting thought. How much of our interests do we get from the influence our parents and families have on us when we're young children?


There are always those kids who grow up after taking years of piano lessons (starting when they were four...they always somehow start that early during these stories), and LOVE it. However, I wonder if this is going to be the case for the children and families I observed during the game. They might be sporting Terp gear now, and smiling at the environment of the game, but as children under five years old, do they really know what the "Terps" are? Do they really understand the excitement they're feeling, or is it just being fueled by their families?

I will show some examples below through some pictures, stories, and interpretations of the moments I captured.



In this photo, I was watching as a young child, all decked out in Terp paraphenalia, was taking a ride on his father's shoulders. He seemed to be having a fun time, and just behind him was his mother, taking a photo of her adorable son and husband. It strikes me as perfect timing because I was able to capture the mother's excitement, being at the big game with her child and husband. I think this photo in essence shows the happiness and interest parents have in their children when they're sporting (no pun intended) the same ideas and interests as they do.


This photographs is one of my favorites. In the suites, a mother with her baby kangarooed on her stomach was waiting outside the bathroom for her husband and son. I asked her if I could take a picture of her and her baby, who was wearing an adorable Terp cheerleader outfit, the perfect example of how a child is influenced by her parents to like something even before she has the mental capacity to make a decision about it herself. Instead of being uncomfortable about the idea of a stranger taking a photo of her and her baby, she replied to my inquiry with an excited, "SURE! In fact, my husband and son are here too!" Her husband was just as excited about the picture, and even asked if I could return the favor and take a photograph with their camera for them. I agreed, and of course practiced my photography skills, trying to arrange the light appropriately, and making sure to focus properly, and though I did choose to center the photo, I thought it was appropriate. What I love about this picture however was how the mother and father were looking at their child with large smiles, showing how pleased they are with him and his Terp spirit (instead of "cheese" he said, "Go Terps!").


This photo, like the previous one, features a young girl decked out in a Terp cheerleader costume. She was very difficult to take a picture of with a smile, but her father did everything he could to make her smile. She loved being at the game, but she was a lot more interested in the Halloween spirit rather than the Maryland spirit. The one thing that made her smile, and even laugh hysterically to a point where she almost collapsed to the ground in amusement, was when her father was making jokes about what you say on Halloween. "Trick or eat? Trick or feet? What is it?" he would say to her jokingly. She got more and more elated as he added more wrong phrases, and always responded, "NO! Trick or Treat!" I was intrigued by the whole scenario, especially when thinking about the angle I'm writing about in this blog post.