The one thing I love about the National FFA Organization is that once your involved it becomes a part of you!! No matter how old you get you still feel impacted somehow by your involvement in the organization! Who know the real reason why but in my opinion it all comes down to that old blue courderoy jacket! Of course many of you might not understand how a simple jacket could influence the rest of your life. So let me be the first to show you or rather tell you. You see its more than just a jacket its pride, its respect, its leadership, integrity, dedication, hardwork, success, tears, a little blood, a whole lot of sweat, and perhaps the most important for me is the fact that it represents memories.
Memories you can't find in any other organization. Memories that will last a life time. Some of my absoulute fondest. So let me tell you some of my memories.
I had the oppourtunity tonight to zip up my old blue jacket for the first time in 4 months it was an incredible experience. You probably thing i'm overexaggerating, but trust me i'm not! When you feel the courderoy, when you hear the zipper, when you smell the jacket itself every memory, place, smell, and sound you have expeirenced in the jacket comes flooding back to you.
As I zipped mine up tonight, a few came back to me... Three taps of the gavel and the meeting is adjourned, tears run down my face as I try and pull what little bit of happiness I had left together. There I stood in the front of a room frantically searching for any one to go to for comfort. Just then my mom emerges from the crowd of people trying to snap picture of the retiring senior officers and congratulating us new ones. I had tried so hard the past year to become what I thought the nom com would see as a person fitted for the Tooele FFA President postition. Yet there I was the new Vice President for the second year in a row. My best friend had just beaten me in that race. Part of me was happy for him yet the other wanted so bad for it to be me. I was shattered, crushed,and yes hopeless. I hugged my mom and completly fell apart, i'm sure my sobs could be heard by everyone in the room but I couldn't hold it in. Finally I let go just as I hear my advisor call the new officers names. Each of us walk over to him, "I need each of you to help us clean this place up, the chairs and tables need to be folded up and stacked, the sound system needs to go back to the library, and all of the stuff that needs to be taken back to my classroom needs to be thrown into the suburban." I turn to go help as he grabs my arm, "Jayden lets you and I take a walk." "Alright" I reply back. "Listen I know right now your upset and you may think that all the hard work you have put into running for President was a waste of time... but please realize that i'm still proud of you and I don't want this to hold you back from running for state office." "I know" I answer back trying to hold the tears back. "You have worked harder than anyone I know to get where you are and you will run for state office got it!" "Of course" I say as I let out a little chuckle. "alright I guess we should probably go back and help the rest of them," he says as he hugs me...
Sweat beats down my face as I hold my lamb and wait in line outside the showring. It's the last time I will step foot in a showring with animal. The auctioneer is talking a mile a mintute as buyers shout out bids. It's my turn and I enter the ring and set up my lamb. "Smile" my mom mouths from across the ring. "It's a little hard to smile when the sweat from your face is dripping into your eye!" My mind screams. I look over to my FFA advisor as he raises his hand to bid on my lamb. Its my 18th birthday, the last time I will get to show a lamb in a livestock show, and about 2 weeks before I moved to college. I start to get emotional again (I had been crying all morning) just as i'm about to take my last steps out of the ring. I walk my lamb out to the pen as I try and hold the tears back. "Its over," I whisper to myself as I walk back up the ramp that leads back into the barn. I take a quick walk by myself so no one sees me crying. I don't want to take my jacket off cause I know its one of the last times I will wear it...
Of course I only told you my most recent memories or the ones that came to my mind first. I could have shared a lot more, but I have to save some for future posts right! Ironically they both involved tears being shed by me. I promise i'm not that big of a bawl baby however, one thing is for sure my FFA jacket has seen its fare share of my tears. But trust me that is not by any means all it has seen. Yes, The FFA jacket is a big deal, to FFA members like me its a HUGE deal, and it most certainly will impact the rest of your life!!
No comments:
Post a Comment