Part one of term paper
We all carry snapshots of our loved ones in the wallet of our mind's eye. Grandparents, long lost, are bright-eyed and strong.Parents are wise and caring, children smiling and maybe slightly mischievous. We do not see -- we do not allow ourselves to dwell on -- their frailties and flaws. Walter Payton combined grace and strength in his fla ...

Part two of term paper
... wasted away to nearly half his playing weight. It is an image many find difficult to assimilate today. I chose to see him, to remember him, this way: It is the early '80s and Payton is in a place as comfortable to him as the womb. He is floating six inches above the frozen turf at Soldier Field, hovering really, splay-legged and open to suggestion. Payton's eyes are wide, deer-caught-in-the-headlights wide. But this wild creature, crackling with that quirky, impulsive energy, is very ...