A few weeks ago, the football coach at my high school reached out to me and said he had some old jerseys that he had and wanted to give them to some alumni if he had their number. I called him and we talked and sure enough he had my #75 practice jersey from many moons ago.
We set up a time for me to go by and say hi and grab it and maybe if I saw a few other jerseys with the numbers of old teammates to take to them. I called and went by and we met in the lobby of McGavock high and proceeded to go to the locker room. Mind you, I had not stepped foot inside my old high school in nearly 37 years and that includes the locker room and the old weight room.
The coach opened the door to the long hallway we would walk down to the locker room. As he proceeded down, I froze. I couldn’t move. Immediately I was in 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th grade again. The memories that came flowing out as I looked down the hall just over took me. Vivid memories of conversations, of laughter, of tears and of growing up. Every problem I had that day was gone and I felt something in side of me that was incredibly spiritual and wonderful.
We went down and he opened the locker room and that same feeling overtook me. Memories man, so many wonderful memories that it wouldn’t stop and I didn’t want it to stop. I went and sat in my locker that for two years where some of the biggest moments of my life were contemplated. I looked over and saw teammates I had not thought about in a long time and that is my fault. The jokes, the ribbing, the tears and the countless celebrations were all happening to me in that moment. It was so therapeutic that I froze. The coach asked me, jokingly, if I was okay and I said, ‘Better than okay.” I just stared around the locker room for five minutes and although it was quiet, the memories were so loud that I almost started crying.
Then coach handed me the old practice jersey. I held that as if it was a newborn and just sat down with it in my hands. A dumb practice jersey that I wore so much that I couldn’t wait to take it off and burn it, that it now sat in my hands and was worth more than gold to me. I got up and the first two jerseys I picked out of pile were those of two of my dearest and closest friends. Well played, God, well played. I grabbed them and went and sat back down and again the coach asked if all was well. “Yes sir, you have no idea.” He said, “I do, it is nostalgia, it is memorable, it is you. It is football.” Perfectly said in every way.
My charge to you now is that if you are able, go walk those halls again. Go to that game on Friday night. If you were in the band, go sit with the band. Call an old friend up and go to the game. Sit in the parking lot and talk as if you were 16 again. The adrenaline rush I felt from all of it, made me smile from ear to ear. I sent a note to my two friends and told them I had their practice jersey and the pride in doing that was palpable.
If you are feeling blue and stressed and have no answers for things you are going through, I will tell you to ask God for guidance and then go find a place where you laughed more than any point in your life. It doesn’t have to be in a high school hallway. And old job. AN old hangout spot. An old house. It doesn’t matter, we all have that place and we got so busy with life, we simply forgot.
All my problems and worries were shut out of my mind on this day and as I left, I sat in the parking lot and thanked God for the moments and the memories.
May we all find that place that carried us and please go walk down memory lane, literally.