21 years of ME

Turns out I made it to 21. A significant point to reach in ones life. To me this is kinda the "holy-shtuff I'm how old and when did this happen" stage. Don't mistake my personal confusion with the seemingly untiring and awful stage of "Oh my Gabe I'm so old I can't believe it, everyone should laugh at me cause this is the only joke I tell". All I'm saying is I can remember only 5 years ago I was learning to drive in the very car that I now drive myself to my Jr. year of collegiate study and park at my house? What. Wait, I have my own place and I'm a Jr. in college this is ridiculous what happened to sophomore year in HS when I rushed to be at homeroom by 8am so I wouldn't get another "tardy" (which by the way wtf is that? who came up with that word) and have to serve a detention.

"I don't know maybe I'm just sentimental like that and I take time to sit back and reminisce."

I guess I want to say one thing to myself: "Get your head up and your throat clear. Now look me right in the screen. Boyish good looks, quick wit, and outlandish charm. Bring it in, team on 3. One, two..."

I'm doing it for me, I'm doing it for the kid who I used to be. For the early mornings and the late nights. I'm doing it for the hard tackles and the 90 minute fights. The camps I never went to and the fans who I meant something to. The kids I gave my cleats to and the way they said thank you. Rolled ankles and dead legs, cleats up tackles and nutmegs. Running past the other teams fans when I scored, and sliding 30 feet for a tackle cause when it rained it poured. The paper thin shin guards and of course victory cigars. For the kid who grew up with one dream of college soccer, but took it as serious as the parents meeting Greg Focker. All the hours I ever ran, and the preseason shirtless tan. The blisters, and pain relief pills, the tipster, and those awful sprint hills. I'd work for hours perfecting my touch so when I'd get in the game you wouldn't see the ball much. Just sit there and juggle for hours, so concentrated I would miss whole hours. Too tired and unable to move from the mist under the shower. Shot after shot I learned to increase the power. Placement in the corned and talks of finesse, take a 60 yard ball and settle it on my chest, drop it to the ground while I spun around. Years with JJ working on bikes, scissor kicks, and other things of that like. The perfect cross was the guiding light that separated the found from the lost. The Average Joe's from the Globogym pros. My weapon a soccer ball, my attack making keepers look like they were playing dodge ball. Dodge, dip, duck, dive, and dodge. I just gave your girlfriend a high five and her family invited me to their lodge. I guess I just took your place, and by the way I untied your shoe lace. Ha, I made you look, didn't even need a move for you to get shook. I'd get inside their heads and ruin their hopes, two step overs and a kick in your ass just made you the butt of my jokes. Warm up? Who needs to warm up, doesn't even matter cause they'd still get torn up. I'd just stand and midfield and watch em, figure out the easiest ways that I could stop em. Lace up my boots, load and lock em. "But coach it'd take the whole team to stop him." Listen guys stop playing and try watch'n. Here hold my watch and time me I'll be back in a minute. Call for the ball, straight thru the field making kids fall. That's all the time I need in a game to straight win it. In the corner is where I'd tuck it, 'cause "you gotta get it, to earn it, to get it, BUCKETS!" See my game is like my flow it's world class, and I learned it all myself, I was the teacher of my class. To steal a line from hockey my game is top shelf, cause when I look around me there's no body else. I used to kick a ball around the house, when I hit something it was loud but I put it back together quiet as a mouse. My mom never knew how many things I shot that ball thru. I was pretty smooth, making passes over couches like the ball was in a groove. Sending long balls into the far end of the hall. Bank it off a door till Ma left for the store. Shoot it off the curtains, knock pictures off the fridge I'm telling you my aim was certain. Until I hit a screen and noise would resinate off everything inbetween. I grew up playing this game, compare it to everyone else's little league it'd be the same. Everything before age 5 was never realized but now I'm going on 16 years of being on teams organized. If you asked me where my skills came from I'd point to the skies, and tell you about someone who I thank when I close my eyes. Cause see my gifts are God given, and this game is probably the only reason I'm still live'n. Why my hearts still beat'n and why every time around it's new people I'm meet'n. The reward was greater than the risk, cause see I'd run for 90 minutes go home and stay sick. Insides felt like they were getting frisked, at times the only thing I could do was get some water and take a sip. I have so many stories it's probably the longest list, it's an understatement to say when I stop playing this game it will be miss.

Just a lil sumtin sumtin I threw together. I may have walked on to a division 1 team today.

"I'd love to continue talking about this conversation when I come back." -D. Zoolander

I started a joke. Which started the whole world crying.
But I didn't see that the joke was on me.
Oh, no, I started to cry. Which started the whole world laughing.
Oh, if I'd only seen that the joke was on me.

I looked at the skies. Running my hands over my eyes.
And I fell out of bed. Hurting my heads from things that I said.

Till I finally died. Which started the whole world living.
Oh, if I'd only seen that the joke was on me.

I looked at the skies. Running my hands over my eyes.
And I fell out of bed. Hurting my head from things that I said.

Till I finally died. Which started the whole world living.
Oh, if I'd only seen that the joke was on me.

Oh, no, that the joke was on me. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh

I Started a Joke- Wallflowers

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