3:20AM, EARLY SUPER BOWL SUNDAY MORNING. I CAN'T SLEEP. ADRENALINE HAS ME AMPED LIKE I'M GOING ON THE VAUNTED SUPERDOME FIELD AT 6:30PM, READY TO DO MY PART FOR THE BIGGEST GAME IN BALTIMORE SPORTS HISTORY. THIS IS NOT AN OVERSTATEMENT. 1983, THE LAST TIME MY BELOVED, YET MALIGNED, ORIOLES WON THE WORLD SERIES, WAS A GREAT TIME. 2001, WHEN THE PURPLE AND BLACK TOOK THE FIELD TO SECURE A CONVINCING VICTORY IN SUPER BOWL XXXV, WAS THE PINNACLE AT THE TIME. I'M PRETTY SURE OTHER BALTIMORE HALLMARK GAMES COME TO MIND FOR CASUAL AND SERIOUS FANS ALIKE. HOWEVER, THE ENERGY AND SIGNIFICANCE BEHIND THIS SAN FRANCISCO 49'ERS AND BALTIMORE RAVENS GAME IS UNPARALLELED. I HAVE NEVER WITNESSED THIS VIBE SURROUNDING A SINGULAR GAME IN MY 40-PLUS YEARS OF EXISTENCE. IT'S 3:35AM, LISTENING TO THIS VERY DOPE "UNDERGROUND RAILROAD---THE PREQUEL" JOINT BY MY GRAY MATTER BRETHREN DJ AWETHENTIC, AND I'M IN A ZONE THAT CAN'T BE DESCRIBED. NOT A ZONE AIDED BY ILLEGAL PARAPHENALIA OR ALCOHOLIC CONCOCTIONS, BUT AN SECTOR OF EXISTENCE I CAN'T QUITE PUT INTO WORDS. THIS IS A TIME THAT I'M RELISHING, BECAUSE IT WILL NEVER BE CAPTURED AGAIN. RAY LEWIS WILL NEVER TAKE THE FIELD AS A RAVENS PLAYER AGAIN. JOE FLACCO WILL GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW THAT HE INDEED IS THE FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK THAT HAS LED OUR TEAM ON A MISSION DURING THIS SPECIAL SEASON. ED REED WILL WALK ON THE FIELD OF DREAMS IN NEW ORLEANS AS ONE OF THE BEST PLAYERS TO EVER LIVE, READY TO UNVEIL TO THE WORLD WHAT WE ALREADY KNOW. RAY RICE WILL SHOWCASE A HEART THAT IS MUCH LARGER THAN HIS STATURE. PAUL KRUGER WILL BE RECOGNIZED AS ONE OF THE HIDDEN GEMS ON A DEFENSE THAT HAS BEEN CRITICIZED UNFAIRLY FOR MUCH OF THE SEASON. HALOTI NGATA WILL PLAY LIKE A MAN POSSESSED. TERRELL SUGGS WILL TOSS PAIN TO THE WAYSIDE IN ORDER TO GIVE 110% TO AN ORGANIZATION THAT REVERES HIS WEALTH OF TALENT. TORREY SMITH WILL ELEVATE HIS PERFORMANCE TO ANOTHER LEVEL, AGAIN, WHEN THE INTENSE PRESSURE IS THRUST UPON HIM. ANQUAN BOLDIN WILL PROVE A TOUGHNESS THAT CAN'T BE TAUGHT OR INSTRUCTED. I CAN GO ON AND ON WITH THIS ENTIRE ROSTER, BUT I WON'T. I WILL JUST HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL KICKOFF, WHEN TWO MIRROR IMAGES PLAY FOR HISTORY, FOR IMMORTALITY, FOR POSTERITY, FOR THE LOMBARDI TROPHY. I WISH SAN FRAN MUCH LUCK IN THE BATTLE, BECAUSE THEY ARE THE MOST DESERVING OF TEAMS. OUTSIDE OF BALTIMOREANS, MOST DIDN'T THINK THAT BALTIMORE WOULD MAKE IT TO THIS LEVEL. ADVERSITY AND NAYSAYERS ACTUALLY FUELED THIS DRIVE TO THE SUPER BOWL. KEY INJURIES TO LEWIS, SUGGS, AND WEBB. THE DEATH OF SMITH'S BROTHER. THE PASSING OF ART MODELL. CONTINUED CRITICISM THROWN AT FLACCO'S WAY. I CAN GO ON AND ON. THIS TEAM DEFIED ODDS AND MADE OUT EVEN BY JUST GETTING TO THIS POINT. THEY ARE NOT CONTENT THOUGH WITH JUST BEING IN THE SUPER BOWL. THEY WANT TO FINISH ON THE HIGHEST OF NOTES, WITH A HARD-FOUGHT TEAM VICTORY SHARED BY ALL, FROM COACH HARBAUGH TO OZZIE NEWSOME AND EVERYONE IN BETWEEN. HOPEFULLY, AT GAME'S END, RAY LEWIS WILL HOIST THE TROPHY WITH HIS TEAMMATES, AND GET THAT OPPORTUNITY THAT ELUDED HIM MORE THAN A DECADE AGO, TO SAY THAT HE IS "GOING TO DISNEYLAND".
4:01AM, AND I'M READY TO REST FOR A FEW HOURS BEFORE WORK. TO MY B-MORE CREW, ENJOY THIS TIME TO THE FULLEST. THIS JOURNEY THAT OUR TEAM HAS TAKEN SHOULD SERVE AS A LESSON FOR EACH AND EVERY ONE OF US. NO MATTER THE ADVERSITY THROWN YOUR WAY, USE IT AS A STEPPING STONE. YOU'LL NEVER KNOW WHEN THOSE METAPHORICAL TRIALS WILL BE TURNED INTO TRIUMPHS. WIN OR LOSE, THERE IS NOTHING BUT VICTORY LATER THIS EVENING, AND GOING FORWARD INTO THE NEAR AND DISTANT FUTURE. FROM THE DARK CLOUDS YOU WILL GET THAT "PURPLE REIGN".
PEACE AND VICTORY,
WISDOM
No comments:
Post a Comment