I must forewarn you all that this will probably go on up until volume 10. I have alot of stuff I need to run through and I know if I did it in one post you wouldn't read it all. So I appreciate you all being patient with my maturation process. When I departed at volume 2, I was talking about something that gave me a lil bit of confidence as I entered High School.
The end of my 8th grade year was a happy time for me. Not only was I about to leave Takoma, the place where I had been shunned by my peers, but I was looking forward to a fresh start where I didn't have to be such an outcast. Another thing that made the forseeable future so bright for me was the fact that I had went up to Coolidge, my future high school, and tried out for the team. (yes as and 8th grader) I was so eager to be one of the cool kids that it never dawned on me that I wasn't experienced enough to play with these guys. I went into the practices with no fear. I caught every pass. I remembered every play. And I just soaked up as much knowledge as I could about playing football in high school. I did so well that before I was even enrolled a Coolidge, people already knew my name. Well not really. I was actually referred to as "Jethro" for reasons I choose not to dicuss now. But what the giver of this name didn't realize, is that even though he probably gave me this name as a joke, I took it as a term of endearment. I felt like I belonged. I would pretend that I hated the fact that they would give me such a nickname, but secretly, I was proud that they called me anything. The fact that they would even notice me enough to give me a nickname was a testiment to how well I must've done on the field. So I took it with a grin.
When 9th grade started, I was beaming. I was one of the only kids that would walk through the halls and know all the upperclassmen. They treated me like a lil brother and I was proud of that. Since I was the only 9th grader playing a varsity sport, I felt like I was special. Only problem, DC had a stupid rule (that they changed because of my coaches petition AFTER I got to the 10th grade) that prevented 9th graders from competing in varsity sports. So yes, after much hard work, I wasn't even allowed to play in games. This really had me down. And most importantly, it opened the door for me to be scrutinized again. People were like, "If you're supposed to be so good, why won't they let you play?" No matter how hard I tried to explain, people still couldn't get why I wasn't playing. Not to mention, I was still dressing pretty much the same as I did when I was in middle school. Which opened the door for more jokes and ridicule. Imagine a kid walking through a hallway of Jordan's, Nike's, and Reebok's, with a pair of DKNY shoes on. It wasn't like I could choose what I wore. I had to wear what my parents could afford. But of course when you're in high school kids don't think like that. All they saw was this big dude with shoes that probably shouldn't be worn by any man. So basically I was back to getting joked on. It wasn't too bad though because I had learned to cope. Or at least I thought I did. My way of trying not to allow the jokes to get to me was to either ignore them, or laugh with them. I think this made me appear weak to a few people. I mean I could fight, but what was I going to do? Beat up half the kids in my grade level. I guess I could've made an example out of somebody but I learned a long time ago that, that isn't the way to handle things (I'll explain this in a latter post). So I would be fuming on the inside but still trying to keep a smile on my face. I was glad that 9th grade flew by so fast. Not only was I going to be able to get a job so I could buy my own clothes, but I received the greatest look to my confidence...
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