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A Vignette:
The Championship

It was November 13, 2001. I was a freshman in high school and a member of the school’s marching band. On a trip to the State 5A Championship football game, my life changed dramatically.
The football team had just won the game and had the perfect season, 12-0. Fans were going insane and celebration was in store for the long trip back home to Salina from Pittsburg. That was at least my thought the moment before I turned to put my band uniform away and my kneecap dislocated and did not go back. There I was, in the aisle of the charter bus with my kneecap on the side of my knee. I screamed for help and no one moved. I think they were all in shock and did not know what to do.
Finally, my band director came with my dad and said the ambulance that had just left the stadium was on its way back. As I was waiting the fifteen minutes for the ambulance to return, my kneecap twisted all the way around my knee and was now on the back of my leg.
Once the ambulance came, it was now time to figure out how to get me out of the bus and into the ambulance. All of a sudden, some senior football players, still dirty and in uniform, came onto the bus, picked me up, and carried me off the bus and onto the stretcher.
When I got to the hospital, the doctors took several x-rays before putting my kneecap back in place. When it was time to “return my knee to proper position” as the doctor said, the nurses put me to sleep and pushed it back in place. The next thing I remember is waking up with my leg lying straight on the bed. I left the hospital in a leg-long brace and a new perspective on life.