Words Create Atmosphere

The other day I heard music that sounded familiar.  It was band camp at the local elementary where drums were pounding, students were marching, and the morning freshness reminded me that football season is here.

I loved playing the game of football.  I did not care too much for practice with the Burma rope, camel caravans, monkey rolls, and wind sprints, but it was worth it on Friday nights.  There is nothing like the thrill of running into a stadium full of screaming fans, band members, girls wanting to date football players, and cheerleaders.

I reserve weekends in the fall to watch football, search the sports page of the newspaper, and flip TV channels during commercial breaks to watch football.

I had this co-worker, and friend, nicknamed Big Ugly, that loved football.  He was a fanatic about football.  At work, we had a game we played to see who the best prognosticator of football was.  We kept a record of who we thought would win games on Saturday.  Usually it was the list of the top twenty teams listed each week in the paper.  There was no money or prizes involved, just bragging rights of who was the best prognosticator.  I must say that I had the best record with a 93% average one year.  I was lucky.

One Sunday morning, I hated rotating shifts at the cement plant, Big Ugly and I relieved the midnight shift.  The topic usually was how well things were running, what things to watch, and what changes were being processed.  During football season, the topic was Saturday’s games and who was the bragging prognosticator for the week.

Big Ugly entered the cement kiln control room with, “How bout them Auburn Tigers?”  The two workers that we were relieving could care less about Auburn because they were transplants from a cement plant in Tampa Florida and both were both Florida Gator fans.  Big Ugly poked out his chest and repeated, “HOW BOUT THEM AUBURN TIGERS?”

The two workers replied, “What about them?”

Big Ugly said, “They beat Florida State.”

The two workers said, “Auburn did not beat Florida State, Bowden (Coach Bobby Bowden) gave the game away with that stupid Rooski Fumble.”  In the Fumblerooski, the quarterback deliberately places the ball on the ground, technically fumbling it. The backs will run to the right, and the right guard will pick up the ball and run to the left.  When Florida State ran it, Tate, an Auburn defensive lineman picked it up.  The play resulted in a Florida State defeat.

Big Ugly got ugly.  He was young and immature and it showed that morning.  He complained that no one gave Auburn credit for being a good football team.  That is when I made a huge mistake.  I said, “Big Ugly grow up.  It’s just a stupid ball game.

We have an expression up home that says, “Cussed to a fly won’t light on you.”  Well, that morning Big Ugly cussed me to a fly would not light on me.  Big Ugly was red haired and of fair completion.  He turned so red I thought he was having a heart attack.  He left the control room very angry.  The two workers and I were shocked.  They said, “What’s up with him?”  They gathered their lunch boxes and went home.

Sundays were relatively quiet and everything normally ran well due to the fact that there were no maintenance men, electricians, or dust collector workers to have the kiln operator, “Stop this, start this, shut this off, turn this on, or take the kiln off coal and put it on gas.”  All these things made for a long day and an upset kiln and kiln operator.  On Sundays, you could sit back read the Sunday Sports page and brag about how good a prognosticator you were.

Big Ugly did not return until the morning break.  When he did return, he stuck his head in the door and shouted, “I have you know that I am fifty thousand dollars in debt, own a house, a new car, a truck, married, and have a baby.”  His face was blood red and he was trembling as he slammed the door.

Big Ugly came into the control at lunch.  He tried to pour a cup of coffee, but could not because he continued to tremble.

I had worried about him for more than five hours.  I knew I had to say something to calm him or he was going to have a heart attack.  I said, “Allen (Big Ugly’s real name), I want to apologize for what I said.  I am sorry that I made you so mad.  I want to give you some big brother advice.  You got to do something about your anger.  If you are going to dish out stuff about football, you had better be willing to take it.  If these men of this plant know that can upset you, they will ‘eat your lunch.’”

Big Ugly said, “The other day I did something stupid and my dad told me I needed to grow up.  A day or two later I messed up again and my mom told me I needed to grow up.  Later my wife and I were arguing and she told me I needed to grow up.  When you told me to grow up I lost it.”

Big Ugly and I grew very close to one another after that.  He would tell people how much he loved and appreciated me helping in life.  Big Ugly and I both learned that words create atmosphere.

Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.  O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.  A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.  But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.  For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned (Matthew 12:33-37 KJV).