How I became a writer Part XII

Title: How I became a writer

Part XII

There were three jocks in my small Christian school (256 kids K - 12th).  I’m not talking about athletic people, we had a fair amount of those kids, I mean you looked at them and thought, “Now there is a jock!”  Jimmy Benem, Jimmy Fletcher, and Jimmy Spaulding, were the three guys who had the look of a high school quarterback or the star of the basketball team.  They were all nice but had that athletic alpha male thing going for them in team sports and the clothes they wore:)  Normally gym class diffused those three in such a way that made them just part of the team...a very skilled part of the team mind you but just part of the team.  Normally in gym class there were not epic struggles but just competition.  Well...sometimes hockey got a little too enthusiastic but otherwise it was all good...except for football.  I’ll never forget the day we played football!

Someone suggested we divide up by class, not team, and so the tenth grade and the ninth grade dutifully did so.  Then something changed, at least for me.  We were no longer in gym class, on the top, windswept hill, with no one watching.  We were in the super bowl!  We were in the grudge match of a lifetime, despite the fact that several players from my team were playing for the other class and one of my closest friends Kenny was also on that team!  We had our jock, quarterback Jimmy Benem, and they had Jimmy Fletcher and Jimmy Spaulding.  We had the large and quick Matt Shreve and they had Daniel Beast from the East (he won a weight lifting competition)!    The epic battle of the ages began without cheerleaders, fans, or fanfare! 

We had two periods of gym class and so we must have played for at least forty or fifty minutes, which matters because we had a major soccer match that night.  I think the other class was into it too because I remember having to sprint hard every time as a receiver to get open.  Then my quarterback, Bernie Kosar (Jim Benem’s favorite QB at that time), would find me if I got clear and launch the ball to me with the accuracy of a cruise missile!  Was I the hero receiver for my team?  No, actually Jim used a lot of us!  I think Steve Clement was the real hero for our team, if I’m remembering right, but I did have one nice long catch:)  The other team did not go down easily!  They had the dynamic duo!  Jimmy Fletcher had muscle, speed, and was a good QB.  Jimmy Spaulding had reflexes, speed, and was also a good QB.  The score teetered back and forth as the epic battle raged.  At the end of gym class, we had won...barely!  I would have dumped a thing of Gatorade on Jimmy’s head but we didn’t have such things in Christian School or in my experience subbing into public school gym class.  Minutes later we were changing into our soccer jerseys and heading for a match...after I spent close to an hour doing high velocity, track style repeats!  I had no idea what lactic acid was at that point in my life, I just knew I was young and bullet proof!!

As the Lord would have it we were not playing an easy school that night but the ultra manly Cathedral Prep!!!  Yipe!!  Prep was an all male school and one of our older boys warned us that they were VERY aggressive and determined to win.  The theory I was given was with no girls at their school they were out to prove something!  I don’t know about that but that other team was in it to win it that night, regardless who they had to kill...er, I mean play.  Problem, I suddenly felt dead!  What happens to you when you get tired?  Everyone is different, right?  Well me, I get clumsy with my words and my body.  Good thing I don’t get that tired all the time because of what happened next:)  You see, that game I played like Inspector Clouseau (from the Pink Panther...original movie, of course:) which means despite my ineptitude things worked out for me in unexpected ways.  I tried to be a clean player in high school and very rarely get angry enough to sin and start coming after the player.  In college the level of play was so rough, I would joke with the defense, “forget the ball, get the man!” but again, I was only joking.  That day I was not mad at the aggressive play of Cathedral Prep...I was too tired playing in a fog.  I accidentally stepped on the bottom of a prep kids foot while they were RUNNING!!  They face planted like something out of a cartoon!  Then I smashed another prep player so hard their grandchildren probably felt it.  Again, it wasn’t that I was trying to hurt them.  I'm sure that as I was on a collision course my brain was screaming, “STOP!  STOP!  STOOOOOP!!!” WHAM!!  "Never mind."  Did I get a yellow card for that?  I probably should have been ejected but I don’t remember if I got a yellow card or not.  I was so tired, I didn’t care.  If I didn't get a card the only explanation I can think of it perhaps the officials thought I was BCS’ enforcer or something.  We came in at half-time and I’m pretty sure Mr. Earl gave an impassioned speech and then Jim Roddy stepped up as an older student.  “Guys, we are getting intimidated by them physically!”  He paused and then smiled, “Except for Adrian, I think they are very scared of him.”  When that game was over Mr. Earl said sternly, “Gentlemen, I want you to NEVER play that hard in gym class the day of a game again!”  We didn’t.

 When I graduated from college (the first time with my three year Pastoral/Greek certification) I expected a church to scoop me up right away.  Yeah, that didn’t happen.  A few weeks later I was walking down the steps of South Owego Bible Church, when the Pastor Dale Ingraham stopped me.  “Adrian, would you consider working with our youth?”  I smiled and shook his hand and said, “I’ll pray about it.”  I was lying through my teeth!  Attend the same church as my MOTHER-IN-LAW...was he out of his mind????  But God came along sternly and told me to accept that call.  Do you know what?  It was great, and my mother-in-law was very helpful:)  But at first I was an apprentice for a year and there wasn’t a lot to do.  I lived a half-hour away and got $25 dollars a week for gas and vehicle wear and tear.  I attended all the services and any youth events but my first year left free time, past my two secular jobs (Dennys and Friendlys).  Still I didn’t have any kids yet and once I got home from work I started watching too much TV and reading too many novels.  I finally realized that God was NOT pleased with that and started looking for an area to invest more time in when Gail was away at work.  I know, I should have exceeded expectations at South Owego but that had not occurred to me yet.  About two years later, when I was complaining to God about things in my life I finished with, “I’m doing a job any lay person can do!” God answered, “But Adrian, I didn’t send anyone...I sent you.  I want YOU to make the job what it needs to be!”  That would change my life and my ministry!

One of the things I found to do with this spare time was writing.  I sat down and rewrote the survival story from start to finish!  Yes!  I actually FINISHED a story!!  When I was finished I had a sense of satisfaction, but after reading it, I didn’t think it was good enough to publish.  Then I wrote a fantasy story staring some of Gail’s young cousins.  They had acted for me in a fantasy play I did at Practical on college preview days and I was inspired by them!  It was a weak story but I finished it.  I think I actually read some of it to them and realized how poor a story it actually was.  I then started a Christian comic book company, which is another story for another time.  The important thing is that just like pouring everything into gym class instead of the big game that night was foolish, so is pouring all of your free time into TV, books, or other distractions.  A little dessert if fine but too much spoils your life and health!