The joyous smells of spring and the fond memories it brings!!

One of my favorite smells in the entire world is that of rain. Rain is so rejuvenating and refreshing, and being outside after a spring rain means the air is filled with this freshness. In the spring, the smell of rain is often mixed with the smells of grass and mud. Many people hate muddy grass, but for a deep-down soccer lover, the smell of muddy grass means so much more than just a mess (or a bad lawn). The smells that accompany muddy grass bring back fond memories of very dirty soccer games, some of which were played in partial snow. One game I remember well was played at Mount Jordan Middle School in Sandy, Utah on a typical spring day in Utah. It was bitter, freezing cold and snowing through most of the game. I remember one area of the field that actually had a puddle of standing water (or was it a frozen-over pond that had just barely broken up because we were all insane enough to run through it?). The great thing about this puddle of ice water was that not only was it right in an area where it was highly inconvenient, but it was also a place where the ball would stop dead every time it approached. In you go through the half-frozen water just to soak yourself even more than you thought possible, in an attempt to retrieve the ball from the puddle, but only really succeeding at helping yet another few inches of your toes, legs, and arms go numb from the cold. I know this sounds completely miserable, but this particular soccer game brings back fond memories for me because not only were we all completely insane to be playing in this kind of weather, but not one of us ended up with frostbite, and I personally ended up with the most awesome bruise I have ever had in my entire life!! This bruise was a result of a recent trek through the ice-water pond combined with the force of a well aimed soccer ball to the thigh. When this particular thigh received respite in the heated car, it was sporting a bruise that actually showed lines from the impact of the soccer ball. There in a perfect pentagonal shape with adjacent hexagons was one of the many trophies my body earned through years of tough and grueling soccer games. I can tell you that I received a fair number of bruises in my soccer days, but none other can I recall with such perfect clarity. This bruise was eternally etched in my memory as a beautiful prize and honor from an hour and a half of hard work in conditions that most people would avoid at all costs.

Photo brought to you by http://photocamel.com/forum/sports-action/41441-muddy-soccer-northern-california.html