The Middle School Rules of Vontae Davis E-Book

Vontae Davis

• Herausgeber: BroadStreet Publishing Group, LLC
• Kategorie: Für Kinder und Jugendliche
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2019

Seitenzahl: 140

Beschreibung

Before he became a first-round draft pick in the NFL, he had to survive middle school. Over one million boys play high school football every year. About 6.5% become collegiate players. Of those, only 1.5% reach the NFL. Those odds were daunting for a young Vontae Davis who endured many challenges as his parents battled addiction. At age 11, Vontae and his siblings faced living in separate foster homes, but Grandma Adaline refused to allow it—adopting and raising all seven children despite financial difficulties. With some guidance from his older brother Vernon (two-time Pro Bowl tight end) Vontae earned a college football scholarship, and after three years entered the NFL. The Middle School Rules of Vontae Davis features Vontae's defining childhood stories and lessons learned growing up in a rough Washington D.C. neighborhood. Young readers will see how Vontae thrived with the support of those around him—none more important than his grandmother. A two-time Pro Bowl selection, Vontae was named an NFL Players Association Community MVP during the 2015 season.

Leseprobe

BroadStreet Kids

Savage, Minnesota, USA.

BroadStreet Kids is an imprint of BroadStreet Publishing® Group, LLC.

www.broadstreetpublishing.com

The Middle School Rules of Vontae Davis

© 2019 Vontae Davis and Sean Jensen

Illustrated by Daniel Smith.

Back cover photo courtesy of Polina Osherov | polinaosherov.com

978-1-4245-5587-1 (hard cover)

978-1-4245-5588-8 (e-book)

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Cover and interior design by Garborg Design Works | garborgdesign.com

Editorial services provided by Ginger Garrett | gingergarrett.com and Michelle Winger | literallyprecise.com

Printed in China.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

from Vontae Davis

I want to thank Grandma Adaline for being in my life, and for having such a positive influence on the seven kids you raised.

Thanks to my wife, Megan, for being so supportive. I’m excited about our future together, raising a family, and reading this book to our children.

Thank you, Brian Bradtke, for introducing me to Sean Jensen and making this possible.

Thanks to everyone who did interviews for this book to really bring my childhood to life, in cluding Coach Craig.

I am grateful for the help of my siblings, especially Vernon who wrote the foreword and encouraged me to tell my story.

from Sean Jensen

I thank God for His love, and His mercy and grace.

I thank my wife Erica for her love and support, and my children Elijah and Zarah for inspiring me.

Thank you Brian Bradtke of B2 Enterprises for initially introducing me to Vontae. And thank you Vontae for your transparency and passion to tell your story to inspire children. Our first time together—over sushi in Chicago—was special, as was our trip to D.C. to visit with your family including Grandma!

I also want to thank Daniel Smith for his amazing artwork; it has been a privilege to get to know you and work with you. Lastly, I want to thank our team at BroadStreet Publishing for having my back!

INTRODUCTION

Dear Reader,

I had a tough childhood. You’re going to read that in my Middle School Rules book.

But I want you to read this book and see hope throughout my story. No matter what circumstances you find yourself in, you will have the strength and faith to use some of the lessons I learned to keep pushing forward. I was inspired to be as vulnerable as possible because many of you could be facing similar situations.

You will read a lot of the challenges that I had to deal with and overcome, but I never let setbacks bother me or keep me down. I have always had a positive perspective. That’s one of the things that my wife Megan loves most about me. My path was treacherous. There were lots of negative influences and forces around me. My perspective allowed me to avoid those negative things because I strongly desired to do the right thing.

I knew so many kids who had as much talent as I had, but they couldn’t resist the bad influences. It was hard for me too, but I had many strong people around me, and they allowed me to flourish. Sometimes it’s difficult to do the right thing. People might make fun of you or choose not to be your friend anymore. But deep down inside, you know what’s right, and you have to possess the strength to do that no matter what the cost.

I am so grateful to my grandmother for many things—one of them is what she did every night. She went into her “war room,” which was actually just her bedroom, and she prayed for people, including her children and grandchildren. I know those prayers made a difference in my life.

Before I headed off to the University of Illinois, my Grandmother told me to memorize and recite Psalm 23 before stepping onto the football field. That impacted the way I played the game.

I hope you enjoy my story,

FOREWORD

I knew Vontae was special when he was young. He would play a football video game all the time, so he knew a lot about the sport. I don’t want to say it made me jealous, but it did make me really look at him like a football guru! He knew about every player, and I didn’t know anything about football because I played so much basketball.

We didn’t grow up in a great neighborhood. There was a lot of crime and it wasn’t the best situation for leadership or influence. But our grandmother raised us, and a lot of the qualities she instilled in me, Vontae has too. I recognized that early on. I knew I had to be a role model for my younger siblings. I mean, being the oldest, I knew they all looked up to me.

We learned, “The right thing to do, is to do the right thing.” But it was still extremely hard to do the right thing because of our environment. Sometimes, I would get in trouble and do the wrong thing. Then, I would get my mind right because I wanted to be successful in life.

I remember when Vontae was drafted. I was so proud of him for staying on the right path and doing things the right way. It was even better that he was selected in the first round! It’s humbling that I have a younger brother who followed in my footsteps.

I hope readers pay attention to Vontae’s story. They can learn that Vontae was a regular kid with goals and ambitions. It’s motivational and inspiring when you think about how the six of us were raised by our grandmother. Vontae’s life is proof that no matter what you go through or where you come from, if you set goals and listen—and he listened to our grandmother!—you can become successful.

Vernon Davis (Vontae’s big brother)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1: The Name You Don’t Know

Chapter 2: D.C. and Drugs

Chapter 3: Grandma Adaline

Chapter 4: Little Grady Gets Punished

Chapter 5: Something’s Not Right

Chapter 6: Grandpa Saves Vontae

Chapter 7: Pranks with Princess

Chapter 8: Vontae Throws a Tantrum

Chapter 9: Avoiding Ronnie

Chapter 10: Vernon Plays Ball

Chapter 11: Standing Up to Dad

Chapter 12: Not Like Dad

Chapter 13: Hoops with Carl

Chapter 14: Vernon Goes to Dunbar

Chapter 15: Bus Rides

Chapter 16: Grandma Adaline Takes In Kids

Chapter 17: Princess Shares

Chapter 18: Sunday Rules

Chapter 19: Vontae Raids the Fridge

Chapter 20: Cleaning with Grandma

Chapter 21: Mr. Robinson Sees Potential

Chapter 22: Vontae Tells the Truth

Chapter 23: Vontae Returns Money

Chapter 24: Tragic End

Chapter 25: Miss Giles and Detention

Chapter 26: The Impressive Jump

Chapter 27: Trying Something New

Chapter 28: Adaline Teaches Vontae to Be Himself

Chapter 29: Vontae Sleeps In

Chapter 30: Coach Craig Inspires

Chapter 31: The Gift of Shoes

Chapter 32: Coach Criticizes Vontae

Chapter 33: Vernon Teaches Vontae a Lesson

Chapter 34: Carving His Own Path

Epilogue

Chapter 1

The Name You Don’t Know

In the spring of 1988, Jacqueline Davis sits in her parents’ living room, preparing to ask her mother and two aunts an important question. She has big, big dreams for this baby.

“What should I name him?” No one says a word.

“What letter do you want his name to start with?” one aunt finally asks.

“I need a name that starts with a V,” Jacqueline quickly says. This is important, after all, since her oldest child is a 4-year-old named Vernon. She hopes that the brothers will be close because they share the same first letter in their names.

“How about Vincent?” one aunt says. “That is such a nice name.” Jacqueline shakes her head.

“Victor, or Vic?” the other aunt says. Jacqueline shakes her head again and again. No one says anything for a few minutes until Jacqueline’s mother, Adaline, breaks the silence with her first suggestion.

“I’ve always liked the name Vaughn,” Adaline says, looking up with pride. “That sounds nice—Vaughn Davis.” Jacqueline does not dismiss the name, but something doesn’t feel quite right.

As time passes, the four women realize there are not many options for boy names that start with the letter V. Jacqueline comes up with an idea: she likes the name Dante and decides to combine that with her mom’s favorite name.

“How about Vaughn-tay/’ Jacqueline says.

“Oooh, I like that!” the other women say excitedly.

“How would you spell that?” one aunt asks.

“I don’t know,” Jacqueline says. “We’ll worry about that later.”

A few weeks later, on May 27th, Jacqueline rushes to Greater Southeast Community Hospital in Washington, D.C. For a pregnant woman, there are three stages to laboi—the process for introducing a baby to the world. Jacqueline needs a few hours in the final stage of labor to deliver her baby boy. After hugging and holding her son, she hands him to a nurse, so he can be cleaned and examined.

“What do you want to name him?” the nurse asks.

“Vaughn-tay,” Jacqueline says.

“How would you like to spell that?” the nurse asks.

“I’m not sure. I’ll trust you.” Jacqueline tells the nurse that the boy’s middle name will be Ottis, after his father.

The nurse is from France and spells the name in a way that seems right to her.

Vontée Ottis Davis

In France, the “e” with a mark that points right and upward is called the aiguaccent. Perhaps the most common French word with the aigu accent is café—a small shop that sells drinks and light snacks. The aigu accent is different than the grave accent mark that points left and upward. A common French word with the grave accent is très, which means very.

After a few weeks of living with her parents, Jacqueline decides she wants to move in with Otis, Vontée’s father. Adaline thinks that is not a good idea. She believes Otis is a negative influence on her daughter and worries that the young couple will not be able to properly take care of Vontée. As Jacqueline grabs her bags, boxes, and baby, Adaline warns her, “Don’t expect to come back here.”

Jacqueline nods and walks out the front door. She believes she can handle the obstacles ahead of her. Vontée moves into a new home in a different part of Washington D.C., but there will be many more moves ahead for him. There will be unexpected challenges ahead for them all.

Chapter 2

D.C. and Drugs

Washington, D.C. (District of Columbia) has a proud history.

Long ago, the country’s first president, George Washington, lived at Mt. Vernon: his estate on the banks of the Potomac River in Virginia. In 1790, Congress gave President Washington the authority to pick the capital of the United States. Naturally, he chose 100 square miles near his home, with Virginia and Maryland donating land. This area became known as Washington, D.C.

But Washington, D.C.’s proud history faces challenges of its own. A terrible epidemic sweeps through the city. Some of the city’s darkest days occur before and during Vontée’s childhood. A very addictive drug is introduced into the city. It impacts a lot of other U.S. cities too, but none more than D.C. Since the majority of citizens in the city are African-American, the drug devastates the African-American community.

The drug destroys families, tears apart neighborhoods, and results in many deaths. Murders become common even in areas where families try to live peacefully. D.C. is named the “nation’s murder capital.” Even D.C.’s mayor, Marion Barry, succumbs to the drug. He is arrested and sentenced to six months in jail. It seems no one is safe from this drug and its effect.

Vontée’s parents cannot escape the grip of the drug either.

The drug is dangerous because it is relatively cheap, it’s easy to access, and it stimulates the body quickly. This means a user’s heart rate increases and they feel a burst of energy. Often the drug causes the widening of the pupils in your eyes. This makes your eyes very sensitive to light and creates blurred vision.

The drug also affects your mind and mood. Some users become violent or unpredictable. They might even experience hallucinations, which are sensations that appear real but are created in the brain. Because addiction happens very quickly, users often focus on ways to get more drugs and start missing their daily responsibilities.

Vontée’s parents are known for being fun and kind, but they are very different when the drug is in their bodies. They do not take care of themselves well, and they also do not take care of Vontée, who by now has two younger siblings. That concerns other family members.

Vontée is too young to recognize the problems.

Chapter 3

Grandma Adaline

No one worries more about Vontée and his siblings than Grandma Adaline. She grew up in Nathalie, Virginia, near the North Carolina border, about four hours south of D.C. Nathalie was named after Natalie Otey, the daughter of an important local landowner in the late 1800s.

Adaline’s parents lived on a tobacco farm and worked as sharecroppers. That means they lived and worked on land owned by a farmer. In return, her family shared the crops produced on their portion of land. After slavery officially ended in the U.S., sharecropping became an important way for farmers—particularly those in the south—to run their farms.

Tobacco is the main ingredient in cigarettes. Nicotine is one of the chemicals added into cigarettes and is very addictive. Nicotine is a stimulant, which means it makes most people feel like they have more energy. In the U.S., cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Cultivating tobacco is hard work. It’s usually hot and humid in the fields. If you don’t handle tobacco properly, it can make you sick. After pulling tobacco from the ground, the large leaves have to be laid on a big table to dry.

Adaline’s family lived in a shack, which is a small house that isn’t constructed well. They had no electricity, no water, and no bathroom.

Adaline had three brothers and three sisters. But after her mother died of an illness, Adaline and her siblings were split between different relatives. Three brothers and a sister went to live with different cousins. Another sister went with an aunt and uncle. Adaline and the last sister stayed with their grandmother.

Adaline longed for more than a simple farm life.

“I’m leaving home,” Adaline tells her sister and grandmother.

“Why? Where will you go?” her grandmother asks.

“I don’t know,” Adaline says, “but I can’t stay here.”

When she is 18 years old, Adaline grabs her bag of belongings and waves goodbye to her family. Her grandmother and sister cry.

Adaline winds up in Washington, D.C., and she lands a job as a nanny. A nanny is someone who has a lot of experience caring for children. She watches three young children while the mom and dad work at their jobs during the day.

Adaline works very hard constantly changing diapers, making meals, reading to the children, playing games, dealing with tantrums, and ending fights. But she grows fond of the children, and she appreciates the work much more than tobacco farming. In her free time, she makes friends, listens to music, and explores the city.

She meets a special man named Lynwood, who is kind and thoughtful. They marry and move into their home in a northwest neighborhood in D.C. Adaline and Lynwood raise six children in the home, and she instills in them one of the core lessons of her life.

Adaline’s Rule

“No one can choose your life,” Adaline says.

Vontée loves to hear Grandma’s story: she is the glue that holds the family together. He is glad that she was brave enough to leave home in search of a new life.

Chapter 4

Little Grady Gets Punished

When he is six years old, Vontée likes going to see his dad’s mother, Grandma Ganeva. She lives in a heavily wooded area on Old Brand Avenue in Maryland, not too far from the southeast part of D.C.

Grandma Ganeva is what the kids call “old-school.” A native of Georgia, she had 12 children, including Vontée’s dad, Otis. She was tough and independent with no neighbors close by.