When I was in high school my favorite thing was One Act Play. I looked forward to it every year. My senior year we lost in the Area competition. I was heart broken. I kept it together as much as I could for everyone else, but when I got home I laid down and cried for hours. It felt like the world was ending and every ounce of happiness I'd ever felt had been ripped from the world. Life would never be the same. I (wrongly) believed it was the worst thing that had ever happened to me. Eventually I accepted what happened and moved on. Unfortunately my brother is feeling the same things I felt then right now. He played his last football game Thursday night, and I can almost feel the pain radiating off of him. I'm not writing this for anything other than him. I'm writing to say the things I can't to his face. The rest of this article isn't directed to anyone other than him.

Dude I know it hurts. It's going hurt for a long time. For a while it's going to hurt more than anything you've ever felt, but that's what finality is. It's like losing a loved family member. It's over, you know it's over, and you don't want it to be. I want you to know that you have nothing to feel but pride. I've loved watching you do what you love. Even though we don't always get along I want you to know that I'm proud of you, I love you, and I can't wait to see where you go in life.