My parents, both of whom are long gone, were married 77 years ago Thursday, on March 8, 1941.

Perhaps your parents have — and, if they’re gone, too, had – a wedding anniversary coming up soon as well. If so, and if they’re still around to hear it, make sure to wish them a happy one.

More than that, really, do all you possibly can to make sure they have a happy one.

For it is with them, your parents, Mom and Dad, that your story starts, and it is with them that much of it is written.

You may ask, “All that is well and good, but with all due respect, what does that have to do with the Browns or this website that I’m visiting, brownsdailydose.com?”

That’s a good, fair question, which deserves an equally good, fair – and relatively concise — response.

I have been covering the Browns professionally in one way, shape or form since 1990. That’s almost 30 years. I’ve loved every minute of it. It’s what I’ve wanted to do since I was a kid – along with being a pitcher for the Cleveland Indians. As such, I’ve never worked a day in my life in that regard.

So I’ve been very lucky – very blessed. I owe it all to God – can I still write that in 2018 and not get chastised? – and to my parents, who, with His blessing, subjugated their own lives, hopes and dreams and instead poured all of themselves, and all of their time, money and efforts, into making sure their only child had as clear of a path as possible to realize his own hopes and dreams, no matter what the cost.

That’s what parents are supposed to do – I know I saw it and read it in the big rulebook of life – but not everyone follows the bylaws. Because, though, my mom and dad were from The Greatest Generation, that’s the only thing they knew and so that’s what they did – not with any pomp and circumstance so as to put themselves out there for being so selfless, but with a quiet reverence that indicated they were simply doing their duty, doing the right thing.

All of this was not lost on me. I think I have thought about that nearly every day since I began this professional journey over 42 years ago, and especially since 1990, where the road finally took me to the destination – to the team, the Browns, and the job, chronicling their daily activities.

My only regret – and a big one at that? That they were not there to share in that joy and celebration.

But I know for a fact that they were watching.

Tomorrow we’ll get back to the football stuff, but as I’ve always said about the beauty of what appears on brownsdailydose.com, when it’s appropriate to go off the beaten path a little bit, I don’t hesitate at all to do so. In fact, I relish it, cherish it, especially with this very personal topic, which is now very public, gladly and purposefully so.