Good-bye.

I’m sad to say that this will be my final blog post. But I couldn’t be happier with the circumstances surrounding it.

Yesterday, I met with the commissioner and the rest of the board of executives. We had a long meeting, about 2 hours, and discussed a lot about my past and future. Obviously, most of the focus was on my anger management and rehabilitation. We even talked a bit about this blog.

In the end, they said that baring any slipups, I am cleared for next season. What’s more, I’ve been given permission to use team facilities and accompany the boys on their away games in the playoffs.

Honestly, I could not be happier right now. All I wanted was a second chance, an opportunity to redeem myself, and now I have it. As I’ve said before, I know there’s reason to doubt me. My past actions have done nothing to show that I have any potential for change. But I’m going to make things right. It’s starts tomorrow, as I begin my offseason workouts a few months early. After that, I’ll come home to pack up my things, and then I head out to Pittsburgh with the team for our first round playoff game.

Oh, I almost forgot. Lost in all the excitement of my meeting is my relationship with Rachel. Date #2 went even better than the first. I’m trying to be as open and honest and positive as I can with this girl. I’m obviously not ready to make any big, overly romantic sweeping gestures after just two dates, but I like how things feel with this girl. And I think she feels the same. I mean, she at least likes me enough to agree to go out with me on New Year’s Eve.

So, this is it. Tomorrow (well, I guess technically tonight) is my fresh start. While this blog has been tremendously helpful in getting me to this point, I feel that now is the time that I should move beyond it. I’ve learned to open up on here, so now I need to be able to open up to those loved ones in my real life. To all of you who have read and commented on this, I want to truly thank you. It meant a lot to see that others were going through similar, trying times and that I was not alone. It’s my hope that you all are able to find a way to get your own fresh starts.

-Blake Sawyer