The trouble is that you think you have time. You don't. You never will.
Football players can tell you they learn a lot about life from the game - hard work, discipline, perseverance, teamwork.
But what about time, and how fleeting it really is?
Whatever else you want to say about the 2009 football season (and there's plenty that will be said before it's over), one thing's certain: it's been a stark reminder of how fragile life can be.
Football's always been a dangerous game - you can't take a single down for granted, because it might be your last.
Oklahoma's Sam Bradford, the 2008 Heisman Trophy winner, had his college career abruptly end on one hard, legal hit. One of the nation's premier passers last season, he snapped school records with ease en route to the BCS Championship game before landing on his throwing shoulder just the wrong way. Instead of beating Texas and heading to Pasadena in January, he's headed to Dr. James Andrews for surgery before he heads to the NFL.
"I've been extremely blessed to be here," Bradford graciously said. "I wouldn't trade a day of it."
In life, as in football, you can't take a day for granted.
USC's Stafon Johnson is fortunate. He still can't speak after a freak accident in which a weight fell on his neck, crushing his throat and larynx. But, miraculously, he survived. As Stafon posted on Twitter, "God has a plan." He is expected to recover fully and once again take the field for the Trojans.
He'll be among the first to admit that he was very, very lucky. He will most likely play another down. Tragically, not every one does.
Two weeks ago, Connecticut's Jasper Howard had a bright future ahead of him. Just 20 years old, the first in his family to go to college, with hopes for a career in the NFL to support his family, including the baby he and his girlfriend were expecting.
Two weeks ago, Jasper Howard had a career day, with 11 tackles and a forced fumble, which he recovered, as he helped the Huskies to a 38-25 win over Louisville.
Nine hours later, he was stabbed to death.
It was the kind of tragedy that you can never make sense of, no matter how hard you try. All you can do is use it as a reminder to give thanks for the blessings you have and as inspiration to live life at full speed and make every day a career day, just in case you don't get another game, another down, or another day.
Daniela Hantuchova
Alison Preston
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