I haven’t posted in a while cuz my wife and I have been on a river cruise down the Rhine river in Germany. A fabulous 10 days— starting with a 3 day visit to Amsterdam then 7 days on the Scenic Opal ship. We flew home from Zurich the other day. I’m trying to re-set my “internal clock” and start sleeping at night again!
But this story is about who we met on the cruise. We made new friends who are from Canada, Australia, Great Britain and USA! As I introduced myself, people wanted to know where I was from and what did I do. “Virginia and retired HS football coach” was my answer. Apparently I said it loud enough that others overheard me speaking!
The second day of the cruise a guy came up and said, “I heard you saying that you coached high school football in Virginia. My son coaches in Virginia too.” and… he (my cruise mate) is a retired HS coach from Indiana! Once we started sharing more, I found out that not only did I know where his son coached but that I actually have met his son at a clinic! And…. they run the Wing T!!! It was hilarious when I texted my friend to tell him that his dad and I just met in Germany!!! “Small world!”
My new (retired) coaching friend from Indiana was traveling with his wife and another couple. The other guy was a former HS football coach too! Obviously, we had several impromptu “coaching clinics” while cruising down the Rhine! It was great to share stories and information.
What I realized was that: American football is a great game! and… it’s played all over the country at the same level of intensity and enthusiasm as its played here in Virginia. To run into a coaching colleague who has a son that I already knew just added to the joy of a great vacation.
