Column: A letter to high school seniors
High school seniors, I’m sorry.
It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. You were all supposed to have the opportunity to chase the dream one more time, whatever that may have looked like for you. Never in a million years did you anticipate that chance being stripped away so suddenly.
Specifically, to the student-athletes that have poured so much into your specific sport through the years, this was the season you have built toward for as long as you can remember. There was one last spring to play with the core group of people many of you have played with since elementary school.
On Thursday, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey and State Superintendent Eric Mackey held a press conference announcing that there would be no more in-person instruction for the remainder of the school year. This effectively eliminated any chance of resumption for spring sports.
That was confirmed by the Alabama High School Athletic Association on Friday morning.
“Like thousands of others, I am deeply saddened and disappointed that our schools have closed, and spring sports will not have an opportunity to finish their seasons,” AHSAA Executive Director Steve Savarese said in a statement.
“Even more so, I am disheartened for all student-athletes, contest officials, their coaches, families, student bodies, fans, communities, and especially our seniors,” Savarese said. “We are facing an unprecedented health crisis, but I am prayerful that the steps we are taking now within our schools and across our nation will enable all those affected to return to a sense of normalcy sooner than later.”
Your team may have had legitimate championship aspirations. Your team may not have, but you thought there was at least another month or two to practice and compete with that team on a daily basis, put on that uniform and represent your school.
The spring championship stretch is one of the busiest, but at the same time, most rewarding, times of year for me. Getting to see and cover all of the tennis, golf, soccer, track and field, softball and baseball players and teams chase the proverbial carrot at the end of the stick is one of my favorite parts about my job.
I can’t even begin to imagine what having that chance ripped from your grasp must feel like.
But one thing we love about sports is how they are one of the most effective ways to teach life lessons. They teach us how to overcome obstacles and persevere through hardship. They teach us how to pick ourselves back up after we’ve been knocked down, literally and figuratively. They teach us the importance of working together as a team and show us how to enjoy the success of the people around us.
Take the time to grieve. Go back through your iPhone camera roll, through all the memories you’ve created this season and in years past, and soak it in. Reminisce about the time your team went on a long winning streak. Look back and laugh at the times you got in trouble and had to run.
But now is the time to put those lessons into practice. Find a way to push through this time and grow closer to the people around you, particularly the ones that will be going off in many different directions come August.
To all of you that I’ve watched, covered, written about or tweeted about over the course of your careers, it’s been an absolute pleasure. Being around you guys is something I have not taken for granted.
I can’t wait to see what the future holds for you.
*Kyle Parmley is the sports editor at Starnes Publishing. This is an opinion column.