Terminus, a latin term for the end of a journey, we have all experienced a journey that played a big role in our lives.
This journey whether big or small develops us into the people we are today. My journey was on the football field.
My love for this game was beyond any other, I felt I learned most about who I am as a person and who I wanna be in the future on the football field. I based my whole life, personality, you name it, all around that funny shaped ball.
I fell in love with the game, and everything about it. I will never forget the feeling of scoring my first touchdown, the addiction had started, I wanted to live in the endzone.
I loved the feeling of having pads and a helmet on, the adrenaline before the opening snap, and I could go on and on, but most importantly I loved the feeling of going to war with my teammates.
When I say the word teammates it’s a very large understatement, their family more than anything. You know that the guy next to you would do anything for you on that field and you’d do the same, that’s one of the great beauties of football, the bond.
Football was never a sport for me, it was life, an art that I would dedicate all my time to master and grow in any way shape or form.
Four practices a week, that’s all you get to prepare for Friday night.
You fight all week for that Friday night and practices tend to fly right by. Eventually it’s game time, and then next week arrives and you’re ready for next Friday once again.
The mistake I made in my football career is I lived for those Fridays, and all I would do is look to the next thing, whether it was practices or games you name it, it was always the next thing for me.
While the greatest years of my life were passing me by, I was focused on tomorrow, when I needed to be in the moment.
In life all we can really say in these kinds of situations is “Man I wish I could go back”, and those words will most likely haunt me for many years to come.
I had the chance to share my last time in pads and a helmet with the guys I got to share my first time putting on gear with, and that will forever mean the world to me.
To the game that changed my life forever, thank you for giving me my friends today that will be my brothers forever. Thank you for the stories I’ll tell my kids and inspire them to play as well.
Thank you for all the laughs, the tears, and the memories I’ll never forget, and finally thank you for giving my family something to do together on fridays allowing them to watch me express my love for the game on the field.
Goodbye football. Thanks for everything.
