songs of experience

The back of the Chapel Hill high school tee-shirt is a beautiful thing. At first glance, it may seem like a bunch of gibberish and even after a “close reading” it isn’t clear exactly what the writer is trying to say. The essence, however, comes through loud and clear, “Never give up. Never give up. Never Never Never Never Never.” (Winston Churchill said that). If you’ll notice, at the bottom of the quote is written: Olsen file v. 7.06. I don’t know what all is in these top secret files, but I do know that “Olsen” is the coach and that the tradition at Chapel Hill high … since I don’t know how far back!? … is for the seniors to write weekly letters to the team to fire them up, to create esprit de corps, to give voice (and power!) to the veterans. A famous acronym from the Olsen files is FTP (F —- The Pain!). This one sparked controversy among the parents of the underclassmen (can you imagine opening up the backpack of your little 9th-grade ingénue and discovering the F-word in bold print?) It reminds me of when my kindergardener told me she learned what the middle finger meant on the school bus. I believe a little F-word goes a long way when it comes to motivation; those seniors who invented it were dead clever. Its the right sort of dangerous for a bunch of highly motivated, academically pressured, Type-A runners. They can rebel against the PAIN instead of against society.

I’ve always envisioned the black-clad Chapel Hill high runners as a pack of James Deans in spikes. When I was a senior at East Mecklenburg in Charlotte, the CHHS Tigers rolled in to town with cigars stashed in their gym bags (real cigars!) which they fully intended to smoke right after they won the state championship. This tradition eventually did get nixed by the parents (and rightfully so), but I still admire their hutzpah chutzpah!

I would like to know more about the Olsen files … so maybe a Tiger will write in (?)