Decisions, Decisions

Well I made one of the hardest decisions in my entire life last week....

I have officially accepted a job at Bushland High School next year (I haven't signed a contract yet....waiting for the board meeting on the 15th). It was all a really quick deal and I was totally not expecting it.

I had already decided that I was going to stay at Road. I checked out the job board (every coach is always "looking") but never saw anything that I was really interested in pursuing and I really love my staff at RR. The Friday of graduation (2 weeks ago), Coach Greeson and I went and ate lunch after we got out at noon. She asked if I was staying and I told her yes. So we go home and I decide to take a quick nap before getting ready for graduation. At 4 I get a text from Coach Rhodes (Bushland boys basketball coach--who I know pretty well) that the training job at Falcon nation is open. I wasn't too surprised as he had told me that it might open up previously. I told him I would look into it, but not much else. So of course I call my dad to talk about it and what not, then I get ready for graduation. Well I've got no one to tell....so I finally find Greeson and tell her that the job is open....and she hates me. (We have a weird relationship.) I share with a few others that night and go about my business. So throughout the weekend I talk to some people, etc. and I hear that there have been 2 names mentioned for the job and I am one of them. So Monday afternoon I call Coach Flowers (Bushland AD) and ask about the job. He tells me to come over Tuesday. Going in, I had no idea if it was a formal interview or if I was just going over to find out some details. Well it was a formal interview and I did great---granted I already know most of the staff. It's an athletic training position and they are adding sports medicine classes next year, so I would teach 2 of those. I tell Coach Flowers I would really like to coach basketball and he agrees that he could work that out. So we finish talking and go to the superintendent's office and he discovers that I teach math and he is super excited. (One word of advice....if you want a job anyone in Texas, get Secondary Math certified...it's not an easy test by any means, but you can basically pick where you want to live and superintendents & principals LOVE you.) So he tells me they might use me in math as well. So things go great and I head home. I cry nearly the whole night Tuesday. I am so emtionally torn on what to do I really couldn't even think rationally. I talk to several different people on the phone...yell at my mom becuase I'm emotionally drained....apologize and cry some more. Finally give up and go to bed.

Wednesday was kind of a blur. I was just trying to hold it together most of the day and consider all the pros and cons. I talk to Bryan....cry in his office (I'm pretty certain that made him uncomfortable and he really didn't know what to think)...and continue to just be a basketcase. Thursday was much better. I finally had made a pro/con list that focused more on the positive than the negatives and put my emotions aside and looked at the facts. I had a wonderful talk to with Angela and finally felt like I was leaning towards a decision. Friday I felt so at peace. I called Coach Flowers in the afternoon, but he didn't answer so I left him a message saying that I would accept the job if they offered (this all goes back to my interview...left out those details). He called me back about an hour later (in the middle of his golf game...gotta find out tee times in the future) and said the job was mine.

Calling Bryan and Angela to tell them I had accepted the job was one of the hardest things ever. (And now I'm crying again as I type this.) They were somewhat expecting it, but it was still hard. I have been so blessed to work with such an amazing staff this year and have learned so much from them. They have truly become my family and I will miss each of them for different reasons. We went through so much together this year, I'm not sure how I will survive without them. No matter how our football games were going this year, I could always find a way to make Bryan smile or laugh. One game in particular was the Fritch game when it hadn't started out as our greatest game and we had an interesting halftime to say the least. Everyone was on edge, but walking out to the field I made some smart comment and all he could do was laugh. Well he repayed me...I remember sitting in his office last Wednesday crying and saying, "It's sooo hard to decide what to do. I'm a horrible decision maker, I don't even like to decide what I am going to wear to school each day" And Bryan looks at me and says, "It's not a big decision or anything....it's just your life." I instantly bust out laughing. Needless to say, it's these little things that I will miss the most. I have developed so many great relationships with my athletes, it is so hard to leave them. Especially because I am the 4th athletic trainer River Road has had in 4 years. I feel like I am abandoning them :( The good thing is that I will still get to see them quite often. We are just across town and in the same district in everything (did I mention they are big rivals???). Weeks that we play each other will be hard, but I will never forget all that they taught me while at Road. As Greeson told me, "The Road Goes on Forever...."

So there it is....I'm now a Falcon (after finishing up a few more things at Road). I truly feel like it is the best situation for me, especially in a long term aspect.

Along those line....the Bushland baseball team has done an amazing job.....they've only lost 5 games all year (and one was to RR) and are headed to the state tournament in Austin next week. So proud of my future team :)