"Home is a place you grow up wanting to leave, and grow up wanting to get back to."
_ John Ed Pearce

This week was yet again another one that was full to the top. Monday all the way to Thursday was the normal routine. There was only one interruption during the week that was highly interesting. Michael Franzese came and spoke to us about gambling and how it will ruin your life as a college athlete. If you do not know who Michael is, he is very famous because he was in the mafia. He was in the mafia for some time then got out of that situation and now speaks to people about it. He told us about some of his past and how it is not a good idea to get involved with gambling or anything of that sort. Michael has been a guest speaker at over more colleges and universities and also speaks to NFL and MLB players often.

This was the usual plain week that had an especially great end waiting for me. Friday afternoon, Cetera (DeGraffenreid), Italee (Lucas), and I were heading to Cullowhee, N.C., Cetera's home.

We were headed to Cullowhee ibecause Cetera's mother, Pam, was having her birthday on Saturday. So being sneaky like Cetera is, we were trying to surprise her by popping up at her house on Friday night. Well, she stayed in contact with her dad all evening to monitor her mom and figure out how we could sneak up on her. We were about 10 minutes away and her dad said that Pam had just left to go to Wal-Mart. Now, we had to find a way to get up to her house, get the car and slip out without passing her mom and being seen. I was thinking, "Oh, Wal-Mart can’t be that far away; come on now, this should be easy." Turns out when you live in the mountains, going anywhere takes more time then you think.

We got all the way up to her house and I swear they live right on a mountainside. The driveway was almost straight up and then, boom, a house. We scrambled, throwing all of our bags in the house, then jumped in the car and went right back down the steep driveway. It took us about 10 more minutes to get down to civilization, and then finally I saw the Wal-Mart. Our mission was not to be seen by Pam and go place an order at the bakery for the birthday cakes. This was definitely easier said then done. If Cetera, Italee, or myself went into that Wal-Mart, we would easily stand out because of all our North Carolina gear. Everybody there wears purple because that is the home of Western Carolina University. So here we stood in the parking lot, plotting our plan to sneak in unseen. So we decided, Al, Cetera's brother, would go in and make it quick. As he walked up to the entrance, Pam came walking out! I swear that was the funniest thing because his reaction was so quick, that he looked scared and took off toward the pop machines. He surprisingly was not seen by Pam. Cetera, Italee and I just laughed and laughed as we hid behind some cars. Eventually, we got the order for the cakes and went back up the mountain toward the house.

On our way back, we found out that we were going to a Western Carolina football game. T’s dad was a coach at WCU for 21 years, so we got to sit in the “W” Club, the best seats in the house. Of course, we had on our UNC gear, and everyone else had on purple, so we kind of stood out. If I learned anything about, “mountain folk,” it would be that they are the sweetest, most accepting people there ever was. They were all very friendly and seemed very interested in what we had to say about college and how our workouts were going. WCU won and, after the game, the band took the field and performed in what they call, “Fifth Quarter.” The band blew me away. They are very talented and I enjoyed listening to them. Finally, after a long day, we went back to T’s house so we could sleep.

Sunday morning, I woke up to the smell of pancakes! There is no better smell to wake up to, in my eyes, so of course I was very excited. We had our breakfast, which consisted of pancakes, sausage, and bacon. After that, we packed up and loaded the car. We were ready to go, but first, we posed for a picture with the mountains in the background. It was sad to leave the mountains because it felt like we just got there. Transitioning from high school to college is very tough and being homesick is normal. As we were returning to the flat land, I thought about my old Kentucky home and how much I really do miss it. The good thing is, I now have two more “second families” to add to my collection. In Kentucky, I have what I call “second families.” They are people who I trust with my life, and they are a very select group. These are people who are pretty much family; they just are not related to me. I now have two more to add to my group. In Kentucky, I have the Heltons and the Karricks. Now, in North Carolina, I have the DeGraffenreids and the Simmons family.

Being surrounded by people you love and trust is a must in life. I am glad that we had the chance to get back to the mountains for the weekend. Now, I am back in, “Chapel Thrill,” and ready to take on yet another week. I had a blast this weekend and appreciate everyone who was kind to us. Pam, I hope your birthday was wonderful and thank you again for putting up with us and making breakfast. Take the time to appreciate what you have in life. You never know what life my have in store for you so make the best of it and work hard. Good things happen to people who work hard and truly believe they can do it.

"Leaders are made; they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile."
_ Vince Lombardi

Stay cool and keep ballin ya’ll.

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