The weather is beginning to cool down, leaves are changing, the evenings are coming earlier and earlier. Fall is approaching, and with it comes one of the most popular American pastimes: football. Whether a college, high school, or NFL game, there is something uniquely authentic about each game you go to. Maybe it’s the rush of your team gaining an unexpected victory, the taste of cool lemonade, or the person you attend the game with. Whatever the situation, each game has its own feel. The perfect symbol of this experience is the football itself.
The football was originally made with an inflated pig’s bladder (thus the moniker of the pig’s skin) surrounded by plastic. As the game developed, it became clear this material wouldn’t work. It wasn’t strong enough for the task at hand. The game was just too rough. A football has to be durable. Durable, but at the same time due to the unique shape of the ball, it had to be malleable. It had to be strong enough to stay inflated and undamaged despite full grown men crushing it and fighting over it for hours on end. It had to survive kicks, tackles, and throw after throw. Beyond that, it had to survive the outdoors. The football couldn’t break down in heat, and it had to maintain in the rain and not get too slippery. It also had to be made of a material that
So how does this represent your unique experience at each game you attend? Because leather captures memories. Leather becomes worn, it takes on the atmosphere around it. Each line, scratch, worn patch, watermark, etc. has a beautiful way of making leather unique. It doesn’t take away from the beauty of the natural product. In fact, the natural product comes with natural imperfect qualities. It carries the story of every aspect of life that has touched it. At the end of every game, the football is completely unique. Just like all of your experiences.
Each step you take, each adventure you embark on, each memory you make, is unique and adds to a part of your life. It shapes you. And you in, turn, shape the world around you. You leave your marks, and you make each experience really truly count. They are all unique and completely separate, but they make a whole you. The world is your football field, let it leave its mark on you as you leave yours and make each game count.
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To record your experiences in words take a look at some of our handmade journals.
And though leather is incredibly durable, take care of your leather products with some leather protector and cleaner.
