Non-Linear

Every step killed me. I dragged myself across the field as I attempted to cover up what everybody could see. Taunting thoughts rushed through my head. What would happen if I wasn’t hurt? Have I let everyone down? Everyone asked me if was alright when I would answer with a short “I’m fine”. A lie. Everything was going wrong. It was my first game of the season and I knew I could play better, but this is the impression I’m leaving to all of my teammates and coaches around me. I never thought that a knee injury could affect me this poorly.
I was thrilled. Everything was going great. I couldn’t be more happy to do the thing I love at a school I knew I was going to fall in love with. Being accepted into Hebron Academy was by far one of my most proud moments of my life, and now I got to play football with a new head coach that I knew was going to make me a better person and player. I had never been excited for school and now I could hardly wait for my first day. During the first three days of practice I could already feel a special bond with the team and coaches take place.
I immediately fell to the ground and winced in pain when I heard the pop. I looked down at my left leg and could only think the worse because my knee cap should have never been where it was. It was only the fourth day of practice at a new school and I knew this was bad. I had always cruised through athletics without a major injury throughout my life but now I had to face a new challenge. In Mr. Vining’s office he determined that it was just a dislocated kneecap and I should be back to play in two weeks, but never did I think that nearly every single practice and game that my knee cap would dislocate again and again and again. I limped and dragged myself through each game with the help of Jose Carlos and Connor Butler by my side every play, and I knew that I was pushing myself too much. I didn’t want to believe that there was something else wrong with my knee although it was inevitable that something else seriously was.
The fifth week of the season was easily the greatest week of the season. The football team had practiced with so much intensity from Monday to Friday with only one thing on our minds, beat Dexter. Everybody on the team wanted this win more than anything because this was Coach Harrison’s old team and we could all tell that he wanted it too. For that reason, Coach Harrison had lit the fuse that inspired us to come together and play in a way that I have never seen before. As the Saturday afternoon game started in Boston, until the seconds ticked off in the fourth quarter, we were a well oiled machine. We fought our way to a 36-6 victory and we all played for Coach Harrison. He grabbed the respect of our entire thirty four man roster because he cared so much for each and everyone of us. We celebrated our win in the locker room but we all knew that the win tasted so much better for Coach Harrison than it did to his own players. He was so proud of us and we were all happy for him.
I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t know what emotions I was feeling. I didn’t know if I was mad, didn’t know if I was sad, didn’t know if I should be happy for him. I didn’t know. I held back tears as Dylan and I met privately with Coach Harrison when he gave us the news that he wouldn’t be coming back next year. A pit in my chest formed as my heart sunk like a falling anvil. I bit my lip and clenched my fists just to hold back whatever emotion I was feeling and to prevent the tears from falling. The news hit me like a screeching freight train. I never could have expected that Coach Harrison would be leaving. Dylan and I simultaneously looked at each other and I could tell he felt the same way I was. Never had I ever cared so much about one of my coaches. Coach Harrison has shaped and played a huge role on who I am today. I’ve never had more respect for a coach before in my life, but now I’ll have to face my senior year of football and school without him. I went home after school and wanted to be angry but I couldn’t be. How could I be mad at the man who has paved the path for me to be where I am today and has set me up to succeed in school and in football in the future?
Looking back on my first two years at Hebron Academy I have realized that I have so much to be thankful for. I have had to face a lot of things that have made me stronger and have met people who have made the most amazing impacts on my life. Coach Harrison has been there for me through thick and thin and there is no way that I can thank him enough for what he has done for me. From playing through an injured sophomore season to playing the best I have ever played in my junior year, Coach Harrison has lead me to the realization that I can improve in anything that I do as long as I work harder than I did the day before. As an advisor, teacher, coach, and person, Coach Harrison has taught me so much and done more than anyone has for me in the short time of two years. We consider the football team to be a family, and it is going to be incredibly hard to say goodbye to Coach Harrison at the end of the school year, but I know that he is and always will be proud of me.