Roy Exum: Why I Am Thankful 2014

  • Wednesday, November 26, 2014
  • Roy Exum
Roy Exum
Roy Exum

Over 40 years ago I was a young sports writer when I came up with the notion of setting daily things aside, just for one day, and writing about why “I Am Thankful.” Every Thanksgiving I come up with my list and it is as much about me as it is about my gratitude for all things great and small. I can’t imagine approaching this day in any other way. Here we go …

I AM THANKFUL for the fourth grade teacher in far-away Kalamazoo, Mich., who didn’t dare laugh when a quiet student dared to share a personal secret: “One day I am going to play baseball for the New York Yankees,” he whispered.

The child’s name was Derek Jeter and the teacher never forgot it.

I AM THANKFUL for the lifetime of joy that accompanied David Fussell, Harold Coker, Larry Gravitt, Buck Rudisill, Fran Simmons, Hugh Morrow, my sweet mom and the wonderful dog, “Scooter.”

I AM THANKFUL that while we have a long way to go with domestic violence, the homeless, senseless rapes on college campuses, and hungry children, we still keep trying. Like Teddy Roosevelt said, “Knowing what’s right doesn’t mean much unless you do what’s right.”

I AM THANKFUL for the life of Luther Masingill and the ultimate funeral at Engel Stadium … what a blessing … just as he was each and every morning on the radio dating back to the attack on Pearl Harbor.

I AM THANKFUL that while we believe the Mass. Institute of Technology has more brain power than any other college in America, the MIT Engineers football team just celebrated its first undefeated season since 1881 and, last Saturday, won its first NCAA playoff game ever in overtime. For the record, there are five “rocket scientists” on the squad (majoring in aeronautics) and no less than 17 current players were valedictorians in high school.

I AM THANKFUL that at MIT football games the cheer goes like this: “Cosine, secant, tangent sine 3-point-14159! Integral, radical, mu, DV, slip stick, slide rule, MIT!!”

I AM THANKFUL that my personal “Athlete of the Year” is Duke football star David Helton, who leads the entire ACC in tackles and will become one of the most prolific tacklers in the school’s history in Saturday’s final home game against Wake Forest. He’s one of 12 players in the nation to be named to the National Football Foundation’s Scholar-Athlete Award but all that pales to the endless hours he read “The Great Gatsby” to a teammate who was in a coma after a watercraft accident, not knowing if Blair Holliday would ever wake up. Helton sat beside Blair for days in the hospital and, when his teammate finally rallied, David started a foundation that raised over $45,000 to help with hospital expenses. Behold not only one of the truly great college athletes of all time but the man he has become as well! He is the son of Keith and Mary Helton and played at Baylor for Phil Massey.

I AM THANKFUL when a great sermon ends three minutes until 12, and when a good try gratefully ends.

I AM THANKFUL that Eddie Wang, the kid in Seattle who I wrote about in his attempt to use the crowd-funding site Indiegogo, has already raised $52,991 of his goal of $50,000 to provide sleeping bags to every homeless person in Seattle and its surrounding King County and that “The Big Give” will assure winter warmth for almost 4,000 unfortunate men, women and children in two short weeks. What a magnificent guy!

I AM THANKFUL for the way Kevin Spiegel is turning around Erlanger Hospital, for the superb leadership Mayor Jim Coppinger is providing to Hamilton County, for the cameras that Superintendent Rick Smith is insisting we place in our schools, and for the vim and vigor of police chief Fred Fletcher.

I AM THANKFUL that in a recent interview, singer Tony Bennett admitted, “I’m 88 and I still have a lot to learn. My dream is to get better and better as I grow older.”

I AM THANKFUL that in the same interview Tony Bennett shared the advice of Fred Astaire: “He told me, ‘What I’ve learned is when you get a set together that is absolutely perfect, go in and pull 15 minutes out of it.’ That was his way of telling me that less is more.” Oh how true.

I AM THANKFUL for the creative genius at Aston Martin, the luxurious British sports car firm, when its wizards were tasked to come up with a catchy ad to sell used cars that originally sell new for $200,000 and up. The result? They pictured an absolutely stunning girl wearing little more than gauze and with the wording: “You know you’re not the first, but do you really care? Aston Martin.”

I AM THANKFUL that technology has now reached the point that careful scientific analysis reveals that the famous “Green Monster” – the 37-foot, two-inch high wall in left field at baseball’s Fenway Park – has 164,630 “dents” from hard-hit baseballs and – get this –some dents have been hit as many as six times.

I AM THANKFUL that Mike Doubleday is getting married again but, now that he’s gotten much older, has the foresight to say “I do” on a day he will be able to remember … 12/13/14.

I AM THANKFUL that I was able to tell one of my longtime writing mentors and legendary friend, J.B. Collins, that I loved him yesterday before he left the house to play golf. He still walks the course at Brainerd, even though he is now 97 years young.

I AM THANKFUL for the marvelous spirit exhibited by “Boston Strong,” that the word of the year is “vape” (it comes from vapor cigarettes, displacing 2013’s “selfie”), and the timeless wisdom of Mark Twain, who noted, “There is nothing to be learned from the second kick by a mule.”

I AM THANKFUL the new luxury condominium in West Palm Beach has decided to rebrand the stunning complex, this after savvy Realtors told the developers that “ISIS Downtown” sounded like an Islamic terrorist headquarters.

I AM THANKFUL that I believe the Christmas decorations now in front of Bruce Baird’s men’s clothing store on Broad Street are the most elegant I have ever seen in my life. Seriously, they are absolutely dazzling in a time when too many of us don’t celebrate the season like we know we should.

I AM THANKFUL for UTC football players Davis Tull and Jacob Huesman – they were just named as the top defensive and offensive players in the Southern Conference -- but the biggest star on campus has to be the sensational Robert Fisher, who just became a Rhodes Scholar. What great leaders for tomorrow!

I AM THANKFUL that on the back of all the Lay’s potato chip trucks is the splendid reminder, “Let’s Do Lunch.”

I AM THANKFUL that when Russian president Vladimir Putin recently eased gun laws, allowing people to carry rifles wherever they liked, he succinctly said, “You can get more done with politeness and a weapon than you can with politeness alone.”

I AM THANKFUL that “Jonny Justice,” a horribly-abused bulldog that was rescued from Michael Vicks’ Bad Newz Kennels back in 2007, is today a certified therapy dog in Los Angeles who can do over 30 tricks and stunts, much to the delight of hospitalized children or anyone else who immediately is enamored with him. It’s like his owner Cris Cohen tells people, “Anything is possible.”

I AM THANKFUL my favorite Sunday School teacher when I was a kid, renowned architect Ted Franklin, has gotten so much better his family moved him from “assisted living” back into his apartment just in time for today’s turkey-and-dressing.

I AM THANKFUL every time my path crosses that of Hutch Smith, Claude Hyde, Harold Wilkes, Faye Boyle, Brit Oehmig, Ray Farmer, Mark Brzezienski, Bailey Hudson, The Rev. Anne Weeks, Sam Baker, Mike Costello, Wendy Baker, Rev. Bill Dudley, Judge Christie Sell, Cory Evans, Reuben Lawrence, Bob Mason, Jean McKamey, and Miller Welborn. Even better is the fact that the only thing this eclectic group and many others have in common is me!

I AM THANKFUL for the best advice I ever got when it comes to funerals. “The family will never know if you don’t go but, if you do, they’ll never forget.”

I AM THANKFUL for the gumption of Colton Jumper, who was a “walk on” on the Tennessee football team this fall and who actually played in a couple of games before banging up his shoulder. For the rest of his life the former Baylor standout will remember running through “The T” wearing an orange jersey and he’s got to realize there are no less than a million guys who would give anything for such a thrill. That’s right – you have to earn the best things in life.

I AM THANKFUL for the marriage of James Costello and Krista D’Agostino in Boston. James, a runner, was badly injured in the Boston Marathon bombing and Christina just so happened to be his nurse for a tough three weeks. He marveled at her kindness and now says she doesn’t like for him to say it but “I’m glad I got blown up!”

AND, FINALLY, JUST AS I AM EVERY YEAR …

I AM THANKFUL the Pilgrims spotted a turkey before they saw a possum.

Please delight in this day you have been given. We are each blessed.

royexum@aol.com

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