A bittersweet day full of memories
I always believe life is about now – none of us will ever have today again so we should never waste it. But it is also good to remember or learn from our past, or to smile at it – and last week I had the chance to do that in a reunion with my old rugby team.
I never played rugby at school but got into it in late teens, finding the camaraderie like nothing else. I played pretty much all my rugby in the EXB XV for Sutton and Epsom RFC, many as captain.
So our get-together for the first team’s final game of the season last week was a fantastic opportunity to rake up both the great games we played in and many unprintable antics we got up to on the many tours we went on.
A tradition of our get-togethers is that we wear silly shirts – because just getting them out of the wardrobe evokes a mentality that will set the scene for the day. And sure enough as the day wore on and we watched our first team win (with the last play of the game) good times were recalled and new ones created. However, meeting up 40 years after we started playing together did have a sadder side as we have lost several former players of late.
Most recent to depart our ranks was Justin Thomas who took me under his wing when I first started playing. He was one of those rare club men who did anything and everything to make the club function and be there for everyone – so many glasses were raised in his memory.
Leaving the club that evening it reminded me of a line in a song by Julian Lennon called Saltwater that goes “What will I think of me the day that I die?” I know Justin would have been proud of his life and achievements, although wishing he could have done even more. It made me wonder whether I could be proud of all I do and gave me an impetus to just try a little harder to do better this week. Thanks for the inspiration, Justin. I hope you too look back on the good times and be the best you can this week for you and those around you.
‘‘ Justin was one of those rare club men, there for everyone