games and entertainment shows such as
The Dating Game
and
The Newlywed Game, General Hospital
, and
American Bandstand
. He made a very good living.
I guess they had expected that I would go with them, but I refused. The thought of living in Los Angeles didnât appeal to me at all. I just wanted to stay with my grandparents in Willcox. I was focused on working out and football. I really missed my mom and especially John. The irony of it was that John was headed off to be raised by my biological father, while I had just spent the last ten years being raised by his biological father.
Because of Grandmaâs help, I was able to attend the tenth grade at Willcox High School. If there was a place where I could regain my focus, it was on the football field. During every practice, I thought about my dad and remembered everything he had taught me. I channeled all my sadness into making him proud of me via football.
I was physically ready because of the time Dad had spent with me training the summer before. I was fifteen years old, stood six feet two inches tall, and weighed two hundred pounds. I was determined to be a success on the gridiron. I wasnât about to let him down. And I didnât. As a sophomore, I made the varsity football team, starting both as an offensive tackle and defensive tackle for the Willcox High Cowboys.
At the first game of the season, with tears running down my face, I spoke to my dad during the singing of the national anthem. âDad, this game is for you. I know you are not physically here, but I know youâre watching.â That day, I had my greatest individual performance ever in a football game: twelve unassisted tackles, a blocked punt, and a knocked-down passâand I recovered a fumble for our victory. I didnât let Dad down and I knew he was proud of me.
For the rest of the season, I excelled on the football field and in every game. Besides my studies and working at my grandmotherâs café, football was all I lived for. I never lost sight of what Dad had taught me. My success producedboth accolades and jealousy. I went out on the field to be the best player I could and to help our team win. I was named to the All-Conference First Team, as well as an All-State Honorable Mention. However, we ended the season with a disappointing 3â7 record.
After the season ended, I became even more focused. I wanted to be better and worked out harder to attain a college football scholarship. I hit the weights and kept running. I joined the track-and-field team so I could throw the shot put in order to stay in shape. By then it had become common knowledge that I wanted to be the first student from Willcox High School to be offered a full football scholarship at an NCAA Division I university.
At the end of the school semester, when we recessed for Christmas, my focus was broken: in December of 1969, I met my first love. Dixie Lee Stow was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. I met her while she was visiting family in Willcox. She lived in Casa Grande, Arizona, about 150 miles away. We spent the entire Christmas vacation together. Eventually she had to go home, but we were both madly in love with each other. Her parents were super nice and they treated me like family.
Dixie and I were both the same age, and not yet old enough to drive. So for the remainder of my sophomore year, we would talk on the phone every day for hours. During the various school breaks throughout the year, either I would go to her house or she would come to Willcox. If I wasnât working out or in the café, I was with Dixie.
Then, the summer before my junior year, I decided to take a part-time job as a lifeguard at the city pool. In between working at the café, workouts, and lifeguarding, the rest of my time was with and about Dixie. We were inseparable. Because of the relationship, my focus on football was negatively affected.
Not only was I madly in love, I could also talk to Dixie. Since
The Dating Game
and
The Newlywed Game, General Hospital
, and
American Bandstand
. He made a very good living.
I guess they had expected that I would go with them, but I refused. The thought of living in Los Angeles didnât appeal to me at all. I just wanted to stay with my grandparents in Willcox. I was focused on working out and football. I really missed my mom and especially John. The irony of it was that John was headed off to be raised by my biological father, while I had just spent the last ten years being raised by his biological father.
Because of Grandmaâs help, I was able to attend the tenth grade at Willcox High School. If there was a place where I could regain my focus, it was on the football field. During every practice, I thought about my dad and remembered everything he had taught me. I channeled all my sadness into making him proud of me via football.
I was physically ready because of the time Dad had spent with me training the summer before. I was fifteen years old, stood six feet two inches tall, and weighed two hundred pounds. I was determined to be a success on the gridiron. I wasnât about to let him down. And I didnât. As a sophomore, I made the varsity football team, starting both as an offensive tackle and defensive tackle for the Willcox High Cowboys.
At the first game of the season, with tears running down my face, I spoke to my dad during the singing of the national anthem. âDad, this game is for you. I know you are not physically here, but I know youâre watching.â That day, I had my greatest individual performance ever in a football game: twelve unassisted tackles, a blocked punt, and a knocked-down passâand I recovered a fumble for our victory. I didnât let Dad down and I knew he was proud of me.
For the rest of the season, I excelled on the football field and in every game. Besides my studies and working at my grandmotherâs café, football was all I lived for. I never lost sight of what Dad had taught me. My success producedboth accolades and jealousy. I went out on the field to be the best player I could and to help our team win. I was named to the All-Conference First Team, as well as an All-State Honorable Mention. However, we ended the season with a disappointing 3â7 record.
After the season ended, I became even more focused. I wanted to be better and worked out harder to attain a college football scholarship. I hit the weights and kept running. I joined the track-and-field team so I could throw the shot put in order to stay in shape. By then it had become common knowledge that I wanted to be the first student from Willcox High School to be offered a full football scholarship at an NCAA Division I university.
At the end of the school semester, when we recessed for Christmas, my focus was broken: in December of 1969, I met my first love. Dixie Lee Stow was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. I met her while she was visiting family in Willcox. She lived in Casa Grande, Arizona, about 150 miles away. We spent the entire Christmas vacation together. Eventually she had to go home, but we were both madly in love with each other. Her parents were super nice and they treated me like family.
Dixie and I were both the same age, and not yet old enough to drive. So for the remainder of my sophomore year, we would talk on the phone every day for hours. During the various school breaks throughout the year, either I would go to her house or she would come to Willcox. If I wasnât working out or in the café, I was with Dixie.
Then, the summer before my junior year, I decided to take a part-time job as a lifeguard at the city pool. In between working at the café, workouts, and lifeguarding, the rest of my time was with and about Dixie. We were inseparable. Because of the relationship, my focus on football was negatively affected.
Not only was I madly in love, I could also talk to Dixie. Since
Similar Books
The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World
Jacqueline Novogratz
