Pierre- Paul’s proud dad sees blessing

INDIANAPOLIS— What father would not love to see his son play in the Super Bowl? If only Jean Pierre- Paul could. He will be at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday, in a special place where it is not so noisy, because loud noises can be a problem for a blind man who can’t see them coming. Somewhere out there, in a world of darkness, his son, Jason, will be in a New York Giants uniform, trying to dismantle Tom Brady.

Trying to make his father proud— the father who has never been to one of his games but taught him the meaning of determination.

“I am 60 years old, and even if I die right now, I will be happy,” Jean said over the phone in Creole, through a translator. “I am so proud.”

Fate took his eyesight nearly 23 years ago, but maybe not his ability to see. Certainly not for this Sunday. “In my mind, I see him running. I can feel him. I won’t be able to see, but I will know what’s going on.”

In1989, Pierre- Paul— having moved to South Florida from Haiti— celebrated Jan. 1 with the birth of a boy, Jason. How special the new year seemed.

Nine months later, Jean’s vision was gone. Even today, he sounds unsure about the how or why. “They told me it had something to do with my blood,” he said.

His last vision of his son was as a 9- monthold. Now Jason is 6- 5, 270 pounds. How could Jean possibly understand the man his son has become? But there is a way.

“I don’t see him as a 9- month- old child anymore,” he said. “People tell me he looks just like his grandfather. They say he has the same face as his grandfather. I am blind, but I always see him as my father.”

The first14 months of blindness were the worst. “I couldn’t eat; I couldn’t drink or sleep,” Jean said. “I was very depressed.”

A visit to his friends in Haiti was a turning point. They took a look at the lifeless face, the gaunt body that had dropped 40 pounds, and they convinced him things must change.

“They told me I had to accept it and move on. After that, I decided I wasn’t going to let it get to me. I had my family and friends, and I decided to live my life the way I was supposed to.

“Even though I amblind, that did not stop me from helping around the house. I cook. I clean. I do everything I have to do. That did not stop me from being a father.”

So Jean not only taught Jason the value of perseverance, but lived it every day. How could he ever imagine it would lead to a Super Bowl?

The father: “I always tell him not to give up. Always go for your dream, for what you want.”

The son: “What I bring to the table to help my team out is that no matter what it is . . . I’m not going to quit.”

It was Jason’s idea to bring his father and mother, Marie Celiana, to Indiana polis on Saturday—“i have no idea where I’m going,” Jean said— so they could share the weekend with all its glitz and glamour. Even if Jean would have to see it all in his mind.

The son: “I don’t know how it’s going to be for him. But I know one thing for sure, and that’s he’s going to be rooting for me.”

The father: “He would like to see me in the audience, even though I can not see him. That’s all I amthinking about. This morning, Jason called, and I told him, ‘ If you win, I amgoing to be rolling on the floor, I will be so happy.’ This is a blessing from the sky.”

The pride of a father, the dreams of a son, the joy of a family. A Super Bowl. Jean Pierre- Paul can see them yet.

Commentary By Mike Lopresti