Saturday morning. An early Colorado sunrise comes in through the window, waking me. I get up and put on my sweatpants, warm from just getting out of the dryer. I bring a duffel bag downstairs, and drop it in the front room. I shuffle into the dimly lit kitchen, and grab a bagel. I put it in the toaster, then spread some honey nut cream cheese on it. I walk out my front door, grabbing my duffel bag on the way. I throw it in the back of the truck, and hop in the driver’s seat. I turn the key over, plug my phone into the aux cord, and pull out of the neighborhood. As I drive, I begin to feel anxious, stressed out. Today is the first playoff game of my senior year of football. I search through my phone to find the right song while at a stop light.
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Dozens of players, all filled with the same sinking feeling. I looked around, and through tears of my own, saw my brothers, my family, my friends, all sobbing like children. Some just collapsed on the ground. Other cursed, some much louder than others. Parents in the stands cried, coaches cried, even the trainers cried. Our quarterback does an interview, answering questions while choking back his tears. Some kids went straight back to the locker room. I stayed on the field for another 15 minutes. I watched the other team celebrate, and I knew that should’ve been us. I tried to take it all in one last time. The smell of the grass, the turf burns on my arms that have turned to scars. I walked into the locker room and looked around. Took in the sight of this small room, filled with bags and gear. The trash cans filled with tape. The sound of cleats on tile, like horseshoes on asphalt. And as our coach told us that it was “all his fault” and that we as a team did much better than anyone expected, I just zoned out. And then I bawled my eyes …show more content…
Thought about all the great times I’d had over the season. And that’s when I realized that this was just a taste of what was to come. With high school coming to an end, football wouldn’t be the only thing I’d never get to do again. I realized that we were all growing up. In a few months, everyone was going to head their separate ways. Some guys would go off and play college ball, and some would go mooch off their parents at home for the next 4 years. But I knew that this was just the start of a new chapter. There’s a lot of lessons learned in life. Some are easy, some are hard. Some are useless, and some get carried the rest of one’s life. But when the clock struck 0, and I took off my pads for the last time, I learned something. Nothing lasts forever. Everything has to come to an end, good or bad. But it’s what a person keeps and takes with them when it’s over that’s important. So don’t just let the good times fade away. Because they may just suddenly fade
Dozens of players, all filled with the same sinking feeling. I looked around, and through tears of my own, saw my brothers, my family, my friends, all sobbing like children. Some just collapsed on the ground. Other cursed, some much louder than others. Parents in the stands cried, coaches cried, even the trainers cried. Our quarterback does an interview, answering questions while choking back his tears. Some kids went straight back to the locker room. I stayed on the field for another 15 minutes. I watched the other team celebrate, and I knew that should’ve been us. I tried to take it all in one last time. The smell of the grass, the turf burns on my arms that have turned to scars. I walked into the locker room and looked around. Took in the sight of this small room, filled with bags and gear. The trash cans filled with tape. The sound of cleats on tile, like horseshoes on asphalt. And as our coach told us that it was “all his fault” and that we as a team did much better than anyone expected, I just zoned out. And then I bawled my eyes …show more content…
Thought about all the great times I’d had over the season. And that’s when I realized that this was just a taste of what was to come. With high school coming to an end, football wouldn’t be the only thing I’d never get to do again. I realized that we were all growing up. In a few months, everyone was going to head their separate ways. Some guys would go off and play college ball, and some would go mooch off their parents at home for the next 4 years. But I knew that this was just the start of a new chapter. There’s a lot of lessons learned in life. Some are easy, some are hard. Some are useless, and some get carried the rest of one’s life. But when the clock struck 0, and I took off my pads for the last time, I learned something. Nothing lasts forever. Everything has to come to an end, good or bad. But it’s what a person keeps and takes with them when it’s over that’s important. So don’t just let the good times fade away. Because they may just suddenly fade