Personal Narrative: The Oak Grove Football Stadium On Game Night

Name class instructor date The Oak Grove Football Stadium on Game Night Everyone has the basic psychological need of belonging and purpose. I satisfied this need by supporting my school in the Warrior Stadium every game night. It was in that stadium where I would quench my thirsts for brotherhood and companionship. It was a place of refuge for me. I could escape from drama and peer conflict, into a bigger and broader conflict between rivalries older than myself. In the Oak Grove Stadium we could all join together in support of the team we loved and stand united against our challengers. Whether we won or lost we did so together as a community and school. It was there that I learned some of life's most valuable lessons. The Warrior
Stadium on game night was, and still is, a very special place to me. The band was always the first part of a game's opening ceremony. We would always line up outside the band hall and march into the stadium from there. A drum-tap-off would begin to ready the drum-line and then the booming cadence would begin and with it the band would start the march, in time and simultaneously. The feel of the hard paved road was painful for the first step but when we neared the stadium it began to get less noticeable as my mind entered a state of complete concentration. We marched in as one, never stopping to let the traffic or spectators pass through our line.
The lines for the tickets led out into the road and often as far as the parking lot. A traffic director would always halt the vehicles passing beside the stadium so nothing could interfere with our line. The gates to the field would always be ready and open on either side of the field, awaiting the band to pass through them on both sides of the field. The drum line's booming cadence was, like our impenetrable line, unrelenting and the sounds from the mass of people could barely be heard. As we passed through the gates and on to the field, cheers would rumble the stadium from our supporters with pride. The opposing school's band, already seated on the visitor side, would scowl and jeer at us as we marched, sometime even throwing trash at us, but we showed our pride and excellence by not reacting to their unsportsmanlike-like conduct. The feel of the turf was pleasing in comparison to the rough pavement but for the small, black rubber pieces that would hop into our shoes at every step. We moved silently into position on the sidelines as the drum line ended the cadence with a final booming note. Then the whistles from the drum major's would sound, letting us know that it was time to begin the pregame show. The march onto the field was one of high-tempo which would bring a heightened since of excitement to the entire structure. Finally in our spots on the field, the whistles
would sound once again to signal the beginning of pregame. We always began pregame with the short fan-fare, followed by our pregame tune, and then our almamata and national anthem we be sung by our choir. The silence over the field and since of respect was stifling during the songs, and slowly the flag was raised by the Delta Squad. Once the choir was finished, cheers would erupt from the home side of the stadium that showed every ounce of our passion and excitement for the game which would soon begin.