This teenager lived alone with his father, and the two of them had a
very special relationship. Even though the son was always on the bench,
his father was always in the stands cheering. He never missed a game.
This young man was still the smallest of the class when he entered high
school. But his father continued to encourage him but also made it very
clear that he did not have to play football if he didn't want to. But
the young man loved football and decided to hang in there. He was
determined to try his best at every practice, and perhaps he'd get to
play when he became a senior. All through high school he never missed a
practice nor a game, but remained a bench warmer all four years.
His faithful father was always in the stands, always with words of
encouragement for him.
When the young man went to college, he decided to
try out for the football team as a "walk-on." Everyone was sure he could
never make the cut, but he did. The coach admitted that he kept him on
the roster because he always puts his heart and soul to every practice,
and at the same time, provided the other members with the spirit and
hustle they badly needed. The news that he had survived the cut thrilled
him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father.
His father shared his excitement and was sent season tickets for all the
college games.
This persistent young athlete never missed practice
during his four years at college, but he never got to play in the game.
It was the end of his senior football season, and as he trotted onto the
practice field shortly before the bigplay off game, the coach met him
with a telegram. The young man read the telegram and he became deathly
silent. Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, "My father died this
morning. Is it all right if I miss practice today?" The coach put his
arm gently around his shoulder and said, "Take the rest of the week off,
son. And don't even plan to come back to the game on Saturday.
Saturday
arrived, and the game was not going well. In the third quarter, when
the team was ten points behind, a silent young man quietly slipped into
the empty locker room and put on his football gear. As he ran onto the
sidelines, the coach and his players were astounded to see their
faithful teammate back so soon. "Coach, please let me play. I've just
got to play today," said the youngman. The coach pretended not to hear
him. There was no way he wanted his worst player in this close playoff
game. But the young man persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the
kid, the coach gave in. "All right," he said."You can go in."
Before
long, the coach, the players and everyone in the stands could not
believe their eyes. This little unknown, who had never played before
was doing everything right. The opposing team could not stop him. He
ran, he passed, blocked and tackled like a star. His team began to
triumph. The score was soon tied. In the closing seconds of the game,
this kid intercepted a pass and ran all the way for the winning
touchdown. The fans broke loose. His teammates hoisted him onto their
shoulders. Such cheering you've never heard!
Finally, after the
stands had emptied and the team had showered and left the locker room,
the coach noticed that the young man was sitting quietly in the corner
all alone. The coach came to him and said, "Kid, I can't believe it.
You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you? How did you do it?" He
looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said, "Well, you knew
my dad died, but did you know that my dad was blind?" The young man
swallowed hard and forced a smile, "Dad came to all my games, but today
was the first time he could see me play, and I wanted to show him I
could do it!"
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