Romans 12:2

This verse plays a special role in my life. It's engraved on a wristband that I’m wearing 24/7. My dad was supposed to give it to me to help me through some of the challenges I was facing in college.

After I tore my ACL last year, he thought this verse would help me through it.

My football future was full of so many question marks. If I’m being upfront about it, I was just pissed off because of the bad timing. I was supposed to be moving to right tackle, and I was told I’d have a decent amount of playing time.

And then that had to happen to me? It sucked, man. It wasn’t fair. 

But everything changed the moment I read that verse. It was written in my dad’s notes with my name right beside it. 

He’d always tell me, “Just be yourself, Christian. No matter what the world tries to push you to be, always be yourself.” 

He was going to give me that verse, but unfortunately, he never got the chance.

Our Sunday Tradition

I miss Sundays more than anything.

My parents moved to Nebraska when I was a freshman. So I still had the opportunity to do the Sunday thing with them every week. We had our little routine where the family would go to church and then go out for lunch after.

Then it was back home to watch some NFL football. I’d always be on the big couch, and my mom would have the loveseat. And of course, my dad would be on his chair.

I’d doze off for a while and then wake up to see that big drool running out of the corner of his mouth. Those are the sort of moments you take for granted. And honestly, those are the moments I miss the most.

There isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t think about my dad. Even sometimes when I’m standing around at football practice, my mind will wander, and I just think about him. 

I think about him when I’m driving, when I’m home alone, and when I go to bed at night.

I wake up every day thinking about the best way to honor his memory. 

I’ve grown and matured in ways I wouldn’t have thought possible since my dad passed. He raised me to be a man, and those lessons have really stood at the forefront since everything happened.

But you know, I don’t have a dad to help me look for a job after school. I don’t have him around for any more of those father-son conversations. I don’t have him to help ease that transition into adulthood.

I mean, I do have him. I just don’t have him in front of me.

My brother has always been there for me, and it’s good to have my grandfather around as well. Talking to him is like talking to an older version of my dad at times. 

But I’m also ready to stand on my own two feet. 

The Greatest Memory

One of the most impactful moments in my life was back in my junior year of high school. I remember being on a team that was really good. We were the favorites to win state that year, but we all ended up getting hurt.

I think the moment that changed everything, for me at least, was after our preseason scrimmage. I was the last one on the field, and I was just sitting there and taking it all in. That’s when I looked up, and my dad was sitting next to me. I’ll never forget what he told me that day.

“Christian, you’re going to make something of yourself.”

That moment, those few words—it’s something I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life. I guess I’ve done alright for myself so far. I’m playing Division I football at the University of Nebraska, and I met the coolest girl this year.

It hasn’t all been bad since last year.

She helped me through a lot, especially with my dad. She came into my life at a really good time, you know? And I'm beyond grateful to have her by my side. 

I’m not going to pretend like I have everything figured out. Now that I’m done with undergraduate school, the next step for me is getting a job, even if I don’t know what that’ll be quite yet.

Indeed.com, I’ll be seeing you really soon.

But honestly, the biggest thing right now for me is just to enjoy whatever comes next. First, I want to end my college football career on a high note. Not a lot of athletes have a sixth year of eligibility, and I certainly wasn’t planning on falling into that category either. But with everything that has happened, I’m very grateful to still be a part of this amazing team and getting a few more chances to go out there and wear my Husker jersey. 

I always had aspirations of playing in the NFL, but I realize now there’s more to life than just playing football. I’m really excited to just spend my time with family and friends. I have three nieces and one nephew right now. I just want to play with them and watch them grow up. And who knows? Maybe I’ll have a few kids of my own one day.

My dad may not be here physically, but he’ll always be with me spiritually. If I ever get lost in this life, all it takes is a quick glance at my Romans 12:2 wristband to drag me back to those old father-son conversations.