The Last Walk

audara2 · Nov 25, 2015

What a crazy ride this last 4 years has been! I feel like I just came off of the most exhilarating ride of my life! I would have never imagined myself as a football mom to my son Chris, who as a 1 year old would cry if he got dirt on his hands. Not in a million years would I have pictured that I would spend so much of my life watching my son pushing and hitting and tackling other kids and actually rooting him on to do it! I became this person that I never knew existed, a screaming lunatic every Friday night! It's amazing how many different emotions one can have in all of about 2 1/2 hours under those Friday night lights! I was happy, nervous, sick to my stomach, pissed, excited, confused, hungry, the list goes on and each emotion changed in the blink of an eye! For those few hours I didn't care what anybody thought about me, I was no longer a mom, I was a MOMSTER! I had to make sure I was the loudest person in the stands, my baby needed to hear me out on the field, the coaches needed to hear me when I thought I knew what plays were working or when they weren't working, the refs needed to hear me when I thought their calls were crap or when I cheered them on for a good call against the opposing team, all my sons teammates needed to hear me screaming their names when they did something amazing on that field! I'm sure the coaches won't miss my loud mouth

I have been on that field after every game, wiping tears from eyes, crying, laughing, loving, and hugging every single one of my sons teammates making sure they knew how awesome they did win or lose!
Nothing can prepare you when that ride is over, not my ride, the ride of a 17 year old kid! I have watched these young men give up so much of their lives for this football ride! They get to start school 30 minutes before the rest of the high school does so they have plenty of time in the weight room, everyday m-f. Their last period is the start of football practice and they get home just before the sun goes down, they eat and hopefully make it to the shower before they pass out. Day in and day out this is their lives during football season! You rush them out the door on Friday morning and don't see them again until you hit that field after the game Friday night! Sleeping in on Saturday is non existent because you have to wake them up at 7 so they can be in film by 8. They get one week off at the end of the school year! One glorious week of vacation is all they get. They spend their summers waking up every weekday at 7 to be in the weight room by 8. They do 7 on 7s on top of that and camps and combines if they don't interfere with the team! They do all of this for 4 years and they never once complain about it, it's just their way of life!
Then that final game comes. You watch these boys hand in hand walk that field, one last time. The tears are raw, these boys have become more than just teammates, they have become brothers and they know for some, this will be the last time they will ever set foot on a football field again. The memories these young men have made are priceless, the bonds, the growing up, the experiences, the coaches, have all shaped these young men into the people they are! We have enjoyed every single second of it!
I wish every single one of you senior football players from every single team in the state of New Mexico good luck in everything that you do in life! This ride might be over but your journey is just beginning! It has been great watching what amazing young men you boys truly are, on the field and off the field!
Please share all your last game experiences!

mamabird · Nov 25, 2015