Prime Choice

  “Yes, ma’am,” I said. Then I asked another question. “When can we dig into the turkey?”

  “It’ll be about four hours, boy. Here,” she said as she sliced me a piece of ham. “Go relax.”

  At dinner it was sorta like my mom had said earlier. Dinner was weird with the five of us. My mom was quiet. My grandma and sister were acting like my dad was royalty or something. I couldn’t even look my dad’s way.

  My grandmother started raving about how much she loved the new car my dad had bought her. “Ooh, chile, I’m getting so many compliments. Can’t even leave the church parking lot without people crowding around to see my car. Your father started that car dealership so long ago, I’m sure we didn’t think it was going to turn into what you’ve made it, Son.”

  Man, it was just a car. Dad didn’t do anything great, he’d just given her one right off the dealership lot. It wasn’t no money coming directly out his pockets. Grandma needed to be thanking God for having good health and a right mind for seventy-five years. But of course I was respectful, and didn’t reveal my thoughts and kept eating the great food.

  My sister was so excited about the brand-new, four-bedroom condo my dad had just purchased for her. She’d be able to collect money from a couple of her friends who were going to be her housemates, and enjoy the extra money he’d allow her to keep.

  “My place is so nice, y’all. Daddy, thank you again for buying it!”

  She didn’t even thank my mom. My dad’s money was her money, too. I knew my moms felt a little bad. I could tell when she looked away and dropped her head.

  When dinner was over, my mom and my grandmother cleaned up. My dad came to my room and said, “Son, you wanna watch some football with me?”

  “I’m straight,” I said, hoping he would get the point and leave. We weren’t cool like that no more.

  “Hey, I know you still might be mad at me, but you can’t stay mad at me forever. You need your father,” he said.

  “Oh, I’ve got my Father. One who’s there for me all the time and never messes up. And at this time, that’s good for me. You don’t need me on your side, anyway. You got your cheerleading session going on: your mom and Payton giving you all the praises.”

  He looked at me with nothing to say. I mean, what could he say? It was what it was. He walked out, closed my door and let me be.

  A few minutes later, Payton came in, going on and on about how my mom was being so cold to my dad. I had no problem with getting her straight on the spot.

  “Look, he ain’t been here. I know dad’s perfect in your eyes, but I caught him with his secretary, for your information. So next time you wanna come down on somebody, make sure you have all the facts before you judge. At the end of the day, Sis, you gave all the honor to the wrong parent.”

  Her jaw dropped. I walked out the room, leaving her with what I just said. Our family was a mess, and her getting in the middle of it wasn’t making it any better.

  Two days later I saw my sister again. She was cheering at the Georgia vs. Georgia Tech football game at Georgia. And I was so proud of her. She was the only brown speck out there doing her thing. Their stadium was beautiful, with 92,000 fans in red screaming, “Dogs! Dogs! Dogs!”

  It was my last recruiting trip of the year. And my parents came, since this was Payton’s school. People didn’t know the real deal; everyone thought that everything was good with the Skky family. I just prayed that God would actually make everything good with my family so I wouldn’t have to worry about my parents fighting and embarrassing me in front of the world.

  Lance Shadrach was there, too. It was interesting hearing the coaches go on and on about what a dynamite player he was. The last few games of the season, he’d turned it out. He was trying to take my place as our state’s number-one recruit.

  He came over to me and said, “Hey, Perry, what’s up, dude?”

  “I’m straight, man. I hear you been ballin’.”

  Lance laughed. We chatted for a sec. Then the recruiting coordinator ushered him away.

  I spotted Saxon. He was talking to a coach. The wide receiver coach was all up on Saxon. Truth be told, I was having a problem with them getting all excited about other guys.

  I wasn’t no scrub player. Shoot, I was high-placed, too. What was that about? I wondered.

  Shortly after, Saxon came over and said, “Seems like I’m the guy everybody wanna get with, huh? Boy, you better post up some more numbers. You trying to be humble and share that ball too much.”

  “Boy, you crazy. Like I care or need your advice.”

  Saxon replied, “Oh, you care all right. Georgia has only one slot for a wide receiver, and it looks like it’s gon’ be me. The other school for your state is getting beat bad today, maybe they still want you.”

  I was so angry. I tried not to let it show in front of Saxon, but I could tell he was getting the message. He knew the big buttons to push, and I let him push them hard. I was fueled up.

  After the game I walked down the sidelines to see the scoreboard showing Georgia Tech got beat by Georgia by twenty-one points; I looked at the Georgia Tech chaplain. Thankfully, the Lord brought my attention back to Him.

  “Skky,” he said, as he came over and shook my hand.

  “I didn’t get a chance to talk to you last week, but I heard your sermon at the FCA retreat.”

  “Oh, you were on the mountain?”

  “Yes, sir. My sister’s a cheerleader at Georgia.”

  “Oh, you talking about Tad Taylor’s girlfriend? Yeah, okay. I forgot her name.”

  “It’s Payton,” I said.

  “Yeah, Payton. Sweet girl.”

  “You did a great job planning that event. I just wanted to say that your talk moved me and made think about how I need to put God first in my life.”

  “I know we’ve been trying to recruit you to Tech. Any chance we can get you there? They’d give you all the respect you could want. Certainly we can continue to get more into the Word.”

  “I really haven’t decided yet,” I said.

  “I know, I know. I’m just messing with you,” the chaplain said. “But you look like you lost your best friend.”

  “It’s just the recruiting thing. It’s tough. I don’t know what’s the right decision with the places that I want to go. It seems like they’re sorta losing interest in me ’cause I didn’t sign up in time.”

  “No need to rush it. No need to be upset if it seems like schools are choosing other guys. They choose them according to their needs. And sometimes they pick the guys and have to move you to a different position. You want to make sure the right school chooses you for the skills that you have. Don’t keep comparing yourself to other people. You’re doing the best you can. Keep believing in God. You say you heard my sermon: cling to it. Keep your focus on Him.”

  My parents, Payton and I had dinner out and then we headed home. On the drive back, Payton still wasn’t acting nice toward our mother. I did feel stronger, but God was going to have to lead me to the right place. With the silence in the car I leaned my head back, placing my family and future in the hands of God. With the peace, I fell asleep.

  The next day Damarius made me promise I’d come over his house to meet some of his relatives. The three-bedroom, two-bathroom ranch could hold about twenty people comfortably. I was amazed to see about one hundred folks there in the backyard and front, plus people eating in the bedrooms and people sitting on the floor everywhere. It was smelling good in there.

  I hit him up on the cell phone to let him know I was in the house. Then all of a sudden, I heard a scream.

  It was Damarius. “Hey, y’all! My boy’s here! The star is here. Y’all back on out the way and let Perry through.”

  He was on his cell. When his family moved to let me through the family room, we found each other and gave a friendly hug. I was hungry, but I had to stay beside Damarius for another forty minutes to meet and greet. Everybody interrupted their meal to shake my hand.

  “Come on
, D. I ain’t got to meet everybody, do I?” I whispered to him.

  “Aww, y’all, he’s modest.”

  His dad came up to me and said, “Well, since my son ain’t going pro, I have to treat Perry good. He’s small now, but wait til he signs for the big money.”

  Damarius’s granddad slowly came over to me. He was so frail and limping with a cane. He then looked me in the eye and said, “Uh-huh. I see he got potential. The top in the state.”

  He listed all my stats. Told me what games he was most impressed with and what I need to improve on as I took my behind to college. Damarius even took one of the footballs from his room, and I signed it and gave it to his granddad.

  “Boy, I know you’re hungry,” his father said as he came over to me again.

  “No, I’m fine. I’m fine,” I said, although really I was dying to get a taste of that barbecue chicken and ribs.

  I couldn’t even eat without someone staring at my food. I just smiled back at people and tried not to let them know that their stares were really bothering me. Then I heard conversations all around me.

  “Probably come outta college early. He could make a million dollars,” I heard a man say.

  “A million? Please! He’ll probably have a signing bonus for about twenty mil,” someone responded.

  And then some ladies on the other side said, “I know his mama has to be so proud. She’s got a football star for a son.”

  “Yeah. But it’s not like they need any more money.”

  “I guess the rich keeps on getting richer, huh?”

  “We all packed all over him like a colony fighting over a piece of chicken.”

  “He is a cute little boy, though,” a lady said.

  “You need to hook him up with Clarice.”

  “Say what? Chile, please.”

  At that moment I choked on a piece of chicken, trying to contain my laugh. I didn’t wanna eat and run, but I was sorta tired of being put on display. I quickly played a couple of games with Damarius and his cousins. The last game wore me out.

  “Aww, man, you ain’t ’bout to jet now, are you?” Damarius asked.

  “Yeah. I gotta get on home.”

  “What’s wrong with you, Perry? You seem ... I don’t know.”

  “No, I’m cool. It’s just that—”

  “What, my people treating you too special? I know you used to it by now. You on the news every Friday night and you done been to the best schools in the ACC and the SEC for recruiting trips. Get used to the spotlight.”

  “Boy, you crazy. I ain’t nobody. I’m just a plain person. But it’s hard to explain.”

  “You’ll get over that way of thinking,” he said as he patted me on the back.

  I got in the car and played my Christian CD. I didn’t wanna get the big head. I wanted to stay humble.

  The next day I had to go to dinner at Justin’s house. It was a sit-down Sunday feast. I was meeting his people, but it was the same overkill. “Perry is the best at this. Perry can do that.” Like I was some TV star or something.

  After dinner I wasn’t at all frustrated when his little cousin who was in the 4th grade asked me to come outside and throw balls. He said he wanted to be a quarterback one day so I told him to try it out on me.

  “You got skills, lil’ man,” I said.

  “You know it!” he yelled out.

  He hailed another one my way. I could tell he had been working on this.

  Before we went inside, he said, “Perry, can I ask you a question?”

  “Sure.”

  “I play middle school ball and I’m really nervous that I’m not gonna be as good as you when I get to high school. You got any advice for me? I want people to think I’m the man, too, when I get up there.”

  “That’s not why I’m standing here in front of you now with a little respect.” He had a puzzled look on his face. “What I’m trying to say is I play football because I love it, not because I want people to cheer my name. Being able to go off to school on a scholarship to play college ball is a dream of mine. So is making it into the NFL. If I don’t play hard now, then I won’t be as good in the big leagues. I can tell you this: I believe and trust in God. Do you believe in God?” He nodded his head. “Well, keep praying for Him to help you. And remember: do everything you can to glorify God. It’s not about football or people screaming your name, but in the end you use your playing football to get people more lifted in Him.”

  He smiled. “Oh, I got it!”

  “So, I’m not saying don’t work for what you want. Keep on practicing, keep on hoping, keep on believing and keep on praying. Either way you gon’ be all right.” As I talked to the little guy I was talking to myself as well. “Just remember, it’s not about people thinking you’re all that. Just stay focused and keep praising His name.”

  13

  Taking Deep Risks

  “All right, men, this is the beginning of the moment you guys have been waiting for all season long,” Coach Robinson said to us before our first playoff performance. “You’re superior to this team in every way. But don’t be fooled. Don’t think that you’re all that. They still can find a way to beat you. They’re probably gonna come out here with the best plays you’ve ever seen just so they can defeat the highest seed. We have three games left at home to play and if we win, then we’re headed on to the Dome. I want each of you to take a few minutes to reflect before we go out there and warm up. Don’t take this game lightly. The best team today wins.”

  As we gathered around Coach Robinson, we were hyped. We were excited. We were ready for battle. I had come close to getting to the Dome on other teams, but I never actually got there. We also never had home field advantage. Since this year had gone so quickly, this was the time to make a difference.

  I just looked around and watched some of the guys get taped up extra tight. Other guys were hitting each other with pads, making sure they were prepared for the battle to come. Some of the players were studying playbooks.

  And then I noticed Damarius in the corner. He was real jittery. His cleats were shaking. He was wrapping his wrists real tight. He was bopping his head up and down. I didn’t know what was wrong with my friend.

  “Hey, dude. What’s going on wit you?” I asked as I hit his shoulder pads.

  “I don’t know, Perry, man. I’m just nervous ’bout this one. Our old coach is here. And he told me on the phone earlier this week that he was coming to see me.”

  “What? He’s coming to scout you for Fort Valley?” Damarius chewed on his fingers and said, “Yeah, he said that if I pull up a few grades, then he might finally take me for a ride.”

  “Well, you know what you gotta do. You gotta get out there and do your thing, man.”

  My friend kept his head down. The boy I knew as a show-boater seemed deflated before he could even get started to show off. I felt compelled to pull him out of his slump.

  “I don’t understand this, Damarius. You been wanting this all year. You’ve just wanted a chance for a shot at college ball. This is your day for another big interception. It was your play that got us to the playoffs. Our defense is tight. You own the secondary,” I said, hoping he’d feel me and agree.

  “Wish I had something to take the pressure away,” he muttered. “Just something to take my mind off this and take my brain up another level.”

  “Boy, what you talking ’bout?” I asked angrily. “You talking about drugs? Steroids or something?”

  “Everybody ain’t got natural skills, all right?”

  “Be for real. You don’t need to throw your future away with nothing like that.”

  “Yeah, right. You know if you was to get hurt one day, you’d be wanting to take something to pump your game up a notch, too.”

  “First of all, D, you ain’t hurt. And second, you don’t know me if you think I’d do some dumb crap like that. Look here, I ain’t trying to force the Word of God on you or nothing, but since you talking about what I would do, I’m trying to pray more. You believe
in God, don’t you, man?”

  “Yeah, I know the Man Upstairs.”

  “Well, talk to Him,” I said as I placed my hand on his shoulder. “Let him know that you need His help down here.”

  I walked away, leaving my friend in his deep thoughts. I knew I was gonna pray for him but I wanted him to take his words to God himself. This was a big game—even though Lucy Laney was favored to win by twenty-one points. Like Coach said, “You don’t take anything for granted.”

  Since the guys in the locker room also looked timid, I went to talk to Coach Robinson and asked, “Hey, Coach, you mind if I lead the team prayer when we take the field?”

  “Perry, that’s fantastic,” Coach Robinson said excitedly. “I didn’t know you would take that kind of initiative.”

  Then I actually started second-guessing my decision. I didn’t want the guys thinking I was a punk because I started to pray. But I dismissed that thought altogether. Though it wasn’t my norm, I knew deep down that anything for God was worth it.

  After Coach gave his pep talk, he turned it over to me. I prayed.

  “Lord, the pressure is gaining here. Football is our life, and being successful at it is our dream. We’re coming to You right now, happy that You allowed us to be healthy and play this game today. Let our minds be clear, and Your will be done. In Jesus’s name, Amen.”

  “You didn’t pray for us to win!” Marlon shouted rudely.

  I didn’t even answer him ’cause I knew my prayer spoke for itself. To me it wasn’t about winning and losing. It was about God protecting all my teammates from damnation. I wanted them to find God just as I had. I just wanted us to have peace, and peace that only came from Him.