That Someone...

“You have nothing to prove but to yourself and to the man above.”- Delmar Johnson

That quote has stuck with me throughout my high school year. All my years in high school I have always lived by that quote.

It was a normal day in the gym at basketball practice. We had just gotten done running and my legs felt like they were going to tear apart from the many 2-liners, 4-liners, and 6-liners that we had ran for “conditioning.” In other words, we were running because the team and I had either gotten in trouble or just because the coach wanted to run us. Without a question, we had to run regardless. Anyway, after we were running my coach had his usual talk with us. When he would talk we would call that a preaching sessions because there was no telling of how long the talk would be nor what the talk would be about. But this talk was deeper than most talks that we usually would have. He asked us “what are you going to do after high school?” When he had said that it made me think a lot about my future. Then he began talking about what men we needed to become. That is when he said “you have nothing to prove but to yourself and to the man above.” That moment I will always remember for it taught me many lessons in life thus far. Every time we had a conversation with my coach he always brought up that comment.

If anyone were to meet Delmar they might say something like:

“He’s mean”

“How come he is always yelling at you guys?”

“Your coach seems like a mean guy”

“Your coach seems like an ass”

When I hear people say that I ignore them. I ignore the comments that they make because they don’t know who he really is. The Delmar that everyone sees is a coach coaching his team and wanting to get that victory. They see him yelling and demanding, but they never see the guy that gives advice and wants nothing but to see his players have success.

My coach has been one of my good friends. Not only has he been a great friend but also he’s been an amazing mentor. He has always demanded so much out of me because he sees something in me that I don’t see just yet. He always pushed me in practice to be the best that I can. Out of the gym he is still checking on me even when the season has long been over. He is always asking about my grades, what I’ve been up to, how my family is doing, and many more thoughtful questions not so many people would ask.

In a sense, I pretty much saw him as a father figure in my life. Growing up without a father really makes a difference in somebody’s life. I am glad that I met him. He has made a pretty big impact in my life and he is definitely someone I will not forget.