Each rising sun takes a little more from the couple who live in the small brick home southwest of downtown. After the game, on Dec. 30, Varner drove Bryant back to Tuscaloosa. He collapsed once from nervous exhaustion, chain-smoked cigarettes, ripped the filters off ones he bummed, passed out on couches, checked into alcohol rehab. Women's Champ Week predictions: Which teams will win the auto bids in all 32 conferences? Rutledge played for Bryant's first team and was an assistant on his last, and when he realized that he would be sharing new information, he clammed up. Varner told even him no. As always, Varner stood in the background. Susie is short, 77, with gray hair and a walker she pushes around. A houndstooth car is just the beginning. The roots of this bond, like many things with Bryant, are full of mystery, myth and misinformation. Are PSG better off without Neymar in big games? Billy tells Susie that he talks to the coach. 1.1M views, 7K likes, 1.4K loves, 363 comments, 19K shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Paul W. Bryant Museum: Paul "Bear" Bryant, kept this poem in his pocket and read it every day. Required fields are marked *. #1. "He's there in the black," he says. He poured a drink and chatted with guests. Quoted the verse in the message this morning. He was a large man, 6 feet 3 inches tall, whose nickname derived from his having wrestled a bear at a. Regularly, he refuses to believe that his old boss isn't at home waiting for a ride. usie Varner answers the door. We're going into the stadium. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. "I never did hear about him dying.". Most afternoons, Bryant would slip into the bar and play cards with friends. Billy shuffles into the room wearing gray pajamas and black slippers. I remember all of them. I can waste it or use it for good. In his Lectures on Poetry (delivered 1825; published 1884) and other critical essays he stressed the values of simplicity, original imagination, and morality. "We knew he'd been offered a lot of money to write a book or help make a movie," says Linda Knowles, Bryant's longtime secretary, "and he would have none of that. Get Free Business Cards--Click on "Training Materials" link and go to bottom of page. "What do you mean, I didn't play football? To his right is the famous painting "315" that shows Bryant on the sideline as he breaks the all-time wins record, and down the wall from that is a pencil-and-ink drawing of Bryant as a young man. He looks back at the Liberty Bowl photograph. The Paul W. Bryant Museum at the University of Alabama campus in Tuscaloosa has confirmed that Bryant carried a poem around in his wallet titled "A New Day" that reads: "This is the beginning of a new day. We made ice cream, one time. Sizing up the player of the year winners in all 32 Division I men's conferences. When Bear Bryant passed away in 1983, a folded-up hand-written note was found in his pocket with those words on it. He was 18. ", She stands still, surrounded by the strangers who've come to genuflect, and she thinks, "If they only knew." Your email address will not be published. But I got it. Four loud slaps. Billy saw him weak and insecure. Alabama Coach Paul Bear Bryant Carried a Prayer in His Wallet-Truth! I looked at him like, 'What the hell you think I'm here for?'". Her voice sounds exactly like that of comedienne Wanda Sykes, and Susie, in real life and in the pictures around the house, wears a little smirk, as if she knows something you don't know. He is also an associate broker at Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Generations with offices in Mobile and on the Eastern Shore. Like his boss before him, Billy Varner has come to the place where he must consider what he did with his time. Across the street, Miles, Davis denied bond in Jan. 15 shooting case, Woman dies in Friday night Tuscaloosa County crash, Aliceville man facing murder charges after uncle shot to death Friday. The sound gets louder. He focuses on the shot from the Liberty Bowl. Bear Bryant had a poem that he read every day. Change). The director of the Bryant Museum approached him about writing a book. He's a 1978 national champion. He smiles and clacks his cane. Varner never felt comfortable enough to strike up conversations with Bryant, but he could poke at the Legend of The Bear. His voice is deep and trails off when he's unsure. Users who reposted Beginning of a New Day, Playlists containing Beginning of a New Day. The price for memories is regret, and somewhere in the middle of all this, Billy considers how he spent his life. Barra found himself attacked for describing one bender at the 21 Club in New York City. We went to the dressing room. This urge to protect, probably born from seeing the Saturday Evening Post erroneously accuse the coach of fixing a game, is also erasing something. USCALOOSA, Ala. -- Something important is being lost. "He never told me anything personal about Coach Bryant," she says. Sometimes they didn't. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. Bryant bought seafood dinners for everyone there, and Billy cracked later, "It was like you were handing out loaves and fishes." I walked in front of him. THE AUTHOR IS NOT KNOWN. When an assistant coach told him in 1970 that Vince Lombardi had died, Bryant spoke of regrets, and it shocked his friend. So, what will you do with your 86,400 seconds? Susie would come home -- she worked with mental patients in a local hospital -- and see Billy's traveling bag gone. T Always, Coach Bryant, just like Mary Wilkes or Sarah Catherine: Coachbryant. JavaScript is disabled. After an hour and a half, Bryant, looking tired and old, walked into his bedroom. Driving through Mississippi one night, they stopped at a catfish house. A half-hour or more has passed. This is the beginning of a new day. Your current browser isn't compatible with SoundCloud. I can waste it or use it for good. I want it to be gain, not loss good, not evil. "That's him up there," he says. Everything that you didnt spend during each day would be taken away from you. In that video is said that the poem was "very very important" to him. They married right out of high school. This site is dedicated to sharing information and knowledge with new and seasoned Investors. We had some guys behind us. She'd always ask: "When y'all coming back?". He spends a long minute staring at the remote control, trying to figure out how to turn up the volume. The living room takes up the front of the house, with a television at one end and, on the wall, a poem about footsteps in the sand, which ends with God telling a follower: "The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.". Please download one of our supported browsers. Today his memories seem to orbit around the idea of protecting Bryant from some unseen enemy. God has given me this day to use as I will. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. The 2014-2015 Mobile Symphony Orchestra Season Kicks Off Next Week, MoonPie Drop Schedule Have Fun and Stay Safe, An honor To Be Named Entrepreneur Of The Year. Bryant's inner circle, those who knew the man, is surrounded by reminders of this. "It was so quiet. Varner went home to rest, and that's where he was when the phone rang again. Oh, s--- $50 wasn't worth it. 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When the bar was empty, the two men talked. Bear Bryant had a poem that he read every day. You can find the full video at www.bryantmuseum.com, . In that video is said that the poem was very very important to him. exchanging a day of my life for it. What we havent used up that day is forever lost. The patrolman understood and backed off. The viral TikTok quiz, explained, Statement issued by Brandon Miller's Attorney, Tuscaloosa McFarland Chick-fil-A is moving. Paul, who rode in a mule-drawn cart from Moro Bottom, Ark., and in the back of Billy Varner's crimson Buick LeSabre, struggled, season after season. Often, Coach read the paper aloud. Paul started reading a devotional in the final two years of his life that said, in part, "When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever, leaving something in its place I have traded for it.". Your email address will not be published. One mellow smile through the soft vapory air, Ere, o'er the frozen earth, the loud winds run, Or snows are sifted o'er the meadows bare. He said he had to rest. His eyes get wide. Learn how your comment data is processed. Billy was Bear Bryant's driver, bodyguard and valet, one of the few remaining people who knew him as a human being. There he is. Sometimes his mind is clear as a crystal. Each of us is already a winner of this *PRIZE*. 2.7K views, 194 likes, 60 loves, 5 comments, 101 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Paul W. Bryant Museum: Paul "Bear" Bryant, kept this poem in his pocket and read it every day. Need help? Heartsill Wilson. Varner drove over, helped get Bryant to the hospital. In that video is said that the poem was very very important to him. That's been scrubbed for posterity. Billy deflates, his voice and his body sinking back down into the chair. Coach Bryant carried a poem called A New Day, in his wallet and often read it to his players. He'd get out. With his diverse hobbies of photography, SCUBA, and travel, there is always plenty to share. His eyes get wide, bulging, like they do when he's confused. The Beatles Are Playing in Mobile! Buy what you want, he told her, not what you need. It happens slowly but clearly. Set your priorities according to Matt 6:33 and you will spend wisely. Amen. His voice ticks up a few notches. 32 NFL players who could change teams this offseason. More information Poem Bear Bryant carried in his back pocket Comments "His life is as concealed as Coach Bryant's life. November. He puts a finger over his lips and says, "Shhh." I can waste it or use it for good. It went like this: Today is the beginning of a new day, God has given me this day to use as I will. I'd travel with him to the games. She answers for him when he seems lost. "He's young all the time here," Billy says. Even though I am an Auburn Tigers fan(rivals of the Tide) I love a good piece of College Football History. Fans stand and cheer. ", "You didn't play no football," she says. The local paper interviewed him, and Billy cried. "I don't ever talk to him now," Billy says. IT WAS FOUND IN THE BILLFOLD OF COACH PAUL BEAR BRYANT, ALABAMA, AFTER HE DIED IN 1982 The Magic Bank Account Imagine that you had won the following *PRIZE* in a contest: Each morning your bank would deposit $86,400 in your private account for your use. "I went and bought me one of those. This is the beginning of a new day. Once, when a state trooper clocked Varner speeding, Bryant stuck his houndstooth hat in the back window. Knowles cries every time. We know Lombardi from David Maraniss' biography, "When Pride Still Mattered," and he comes across as smaller and therefore larger in the retelling, because his humanity is on every page. There's the framed photograph of Bryant on a football field for the final time, with a "Thanks for the Memories" sign in the background. I want it to be a gain, not loss, good not evil, success not failure, in order that I should not forget the price I paid for it., Your email address will not be published. If I'd changed jobs, I would have been making $50 more a month. "I always did want me the old-timey ice cream freezer," she says. They made small talk in the car, nothing about the life's work that had just ended. What I do today is very important. I was a big guy " -- Billy sits up in his chair, and his face becomes menacing; he bows up his shoulders and arms -- " and by the time those bullets go through me, he's gone. He looked out the window at the river and the bridge to Arkansas, which led eventually to the place where his journey began: a four-room house without electricity or running water. Nobody ever has a plan. He was with him almost 24 hours a day.". He took a month off, trying to figure out how Coach Bryant would tell him to deal with his grief. You get a job out there you would have made $50 more a month. 3.85K subscribers Former Alabama football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant read this poem every day. Sure did. Heres wishing you a wonderful and beautiful day. God has given me thisday to use as I will. Live your day for the glory of God. That's a no-no.". I can waste it or use it for good. "That's him," she says, standing so he can sit. The pictures seem to anchor him. When Bear Bryant passed away in 1983, a folded-up hand-written note was found in his pocket with those words on it. They watched the moon landing together, hung out with Bob Hope together. Those seconds are worth so much more than the same amount in dollars. Poem Bear Bryant carried in his back pocket Alabama Football Roll Tide Crimson Tide Football Alabama Crimson Tide Favorite Words Favorite Quotes Wise Words Words Of Wisdom Keep On Keepin On Bear Bryant More information . "There was so much going on," he says. The walls are covered with certificates and mementos of his service. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. Bear Bryant Poem One of my favorite poems was one Bear Bryant used to carry around in his wallet. Knowles has walked through the museum about 10 times. A diamond of belly shows through the puckered front of his shirt. In 1996, 14 years after Bryant died, he retired from the University of Alabama Police Department. Croakies to hold sunglasses, cuff links, purses, both the kind with handles and clutches. Is your network connection unstable or browser outdated? Bear Byrant Image credit and video credit both to Youtube video:https://youtu.be/Ql_D3WvmT3U. With over 38 years in the real estate investing experience Dennis has done numerous profitable real estate transactions throughout the Southern United States. He shared this poem (some call it a prayer) to The Quarterbacks club in 1981. I can waste it or use it for good. He's an honorary assistant coach for the 1975 season. The pictures on the wall hold him. "I wish I'd read this 30 years ago," he told a friend, "I wouldn't have wasted so much valuable time." He says something else, his voice deep, the sentences trailing off. A few days before the game, as a television crew interviewed him, Bryant walked by and cracked, "Don't rush yourself, Billy, I'll bring the car around. I can waste it or use it for good. This isn't a celebration. "The white hat. When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever, leaving something in its place I have traded for it. Price for memories is regret, and travel, there is always plenty to share use as I.. Place where he was when the bar was empty, the sentences off. Bryant died, he refuses to believe that his old boss is n't at home waiting for a.... Belly shows through the Museum about 10 times life is as concealed as Coach Bryant 's inner,! 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