Our Last Game

The buzzer went off and awoke me from my daze. In my trance I had been thinking about the different offensive and defensive plays that we were about to run, but as the buzzer sounded I came back to the game. This would be our last basketball game as a team and we decided that we would consider this game to be our "national championship". It would show how far we have come as a team and how greatly we have improved individually. We needed this win and we were about to give it our all as a team to come out of this game victorious. It was time for the tip-off. We lost the tip, but we got a steal right off the bat. Already, we had the momentum of the game. After running though our offense a few times, the clock had already been run and it was time for the second quarter. At this point we were losing by four, a deficit that we had come back from many times before, and it was the other team's ball, but we were not worried. We felt confident and relaxed while the other team seemed to rush their offensive and jump at the ball on defense. This would give us the advantage over the other team. The game continued reguarly and the second quarter was soon over. During halftime, we did not talk much about what we could do better, but about the reasons we are playing out there and the reasons that we as a team should come together for this win. The second half was nothing like the first. The intensity rose as we took the lead and the other team became more desparate. The crowd was wild as the refs wrecked more than a few calls. The fourth quarter finally came and we were up by six. Within the next two minutes, they made a small comeback and tied the game up. Coach called a time out to get our heads back into the game.
"Alright guys, this is it. Are you going to let them take this from us? This is our last game! Let's go! Fourth quarter!"
"Our Quarter!" is how we all responded.
It was our time to take this game and there was no way that we would allow them to win. With only forty-five seconds left in the fourth, we were still tied. The clock ran as the team handled the ball on offense, looking for the last shot of the game. With fifteen seconds left, they shot the ball and we feared the worst, but were relieved to see that they had missed and we had gotten the rebound. We pushed the ball, got through their defense, and won as a team as the ball went through the basket and the buzzer sounded for the last time in our season.
The game was over and we had won! This was a moment of true happiness; happiness for my team, how well we played as a team, and how greatly we had improved throughout the season. My elation could not be brought down by anything...except the realization that the final buzzer of this game meant the start of a grueling track season. Within these few seconds, my emotions changed from pure happiness to sorrow.

TSA

I remember the Christmas of ’02. At the time I thought it was the best Christmas ever, but at that age I thought that every event and holiday had been the best ever. I know realize how easy it is to impress a child of that age. It really doesn’t take much at all to turn an ordinary day of life into something greater that the child will remember for a very long time. With this comes also the ability to easily change a great thing for a child into something terrible for him.

For Christmas in 2002 I got from my brother what I thought was the coolest thing ever invented. A few nerf guns were all it took to change my life at the time. These small toys could provide instant joy and entertainment.

After the best Christmas ever in Jacksonville, Florida, it was time to go home to Memphis, Tennessee, where I lived at the time. While I did not want to leave the family-and by that I mean I didn’t want to leave my nerf gun targets-, I did love to fly so I awaited the trip to the airport impatiently. When it was finally time to hop into the rental car and ride to the airport, I threw the bags into the car, thinking that the rushing of the packing would make the plane come faster. It took what seemed like an eternity to get to the airport, where the lines wasted even more time. We got our tickets and got into another seemingly endless line.

But this line was by far more exiting than the last. Who doesn’t want to be forced into the removal of their shoes, belt, and any carry on bags? Going through security was to be the first highlight of my day. My turn came and I quickly slid the flip-flops off of my feet and tore the belt from my waist. When I was called through by the intimidating but kind officer, I slowly walked though the metal detector, soaking in the glory of being examined closely by government officials.

Everything went exactly as I had planned, or so I had thought. My bag was pulled to the side and they were looking through it. When they pulled out the nerf guns and threw them into another container, my world just about ended. I pleaded for the TSA officers to return my guns, but they apologetically refused. My mother had to pull me away from security to get me to calm down. Taking my guns was not something that I was just going to let go. It is not reasonable that I would be affected so greatly by the confiscation of my new toys, but there is often no reasoning with children. My mom promised to get me new nerf guns when we got back home, but it was too late.

My trip had been ruined.

Braces

I had been waiting for this moment for years now. I was in the tenth grade at the time and since the sixth grade I was being punished by what I considered to be one of the worst punishments of all time: braces. My braces had been my enemy for five years now and I was more than ready to get them off. Today was the day of my orthodontist appointment and I was going to get those awful things off. I did not, however, want to get my hopes up too high because they had decided to take my braces off before and changed there minds right after. I was really supposed to get them off in eighth grade, but due to my teeth, and I guess due to my lack of dedication to the wearing of the rubber bands, I could not get them off until now. I ensured that everyone in my class knew exactly where I was going before I left school in the middle of third period to experience the event that was surely going to make my life much better. The drive to the doctor's office was intense. I had never been so ready to get something out of my life. We finally arrived at the office.

"Please take a seat, we will be right with you," the lady at the front desk ensured. Like most doctor's appointments, the lady at the front desk lied and I had to wait for at least a half an hour.

"Zach? Great to see you! Come on back," the doctor finally called. I followed the doctor, who I knew very well by that time, to the back of the office where I reclined in a chair that I had been in many times before. She didn't have to tell me what to do; I knew the procedure. I quickly brushed my teeth, threw the glasses on, and sat back down, waiting for her to see my teeth so that she could tell me what I wanted to hear. She asked me to open up and I obliged.

"Uh-oh" she said at last. Two syllables. It only took two syllables to ensure me that I would have the braces for at least another three months. I cannot say that I was too sad though, for I had heard this a few times already, but I was really sure that they would come off this time. It was after hearing this news again that I decided that I would never again go into something without full dedication to it.