I grew up poor－living in the housing projects(住房)with six brothers, three sisters, a varying assortment(各式各樣?xùn)|西的混合)of foster kids(養(yǎng)子), my father, and a wonderful mother, Scarlette Hunley．We had little money and few worldly goods, but plenty of love and attention．I was 　　1　　 and energetic．I understood that no matter how poor a person was, he could still 　　2　　 a dream．

　　My dream was 　　3　�。�By the time I was sixteen, I could crush a baseball, and hit anything that moved on the baseball field．I was also 　　4　�。�My high school coach Jarvis, who not only believed in me, but taught me how to believe in myself．He 　　5　　 me the difference between having a dream and showing conviction(信念)．One particular incident with Coach Jarvis changed my life forever．

　　It was the summer between my junior and senior years, and a friend 　　6　　 me for a summer job．This meant a chance for money in my pocket－cash for dates with girls, certainly, money for a new bike and new clothes, and the start of savings for a 　　7　　 for my mother．The prospect of a summer job was attractive and interesting, and I wanted to jump at the opportunity．Then I realized I would have to 　　8　　 summer baseball to handle the work schedule, and that meant I would have to tell Coach Jarvis I wouldn’t be playing．

　　When I told Coach Jarvis, he was 　　9　　 as I expected him to be．“You have your whole life to work，” he said．“Your 　　10　　 days are limited．You can’t afford to waste them．”

　　I stood before him with my head hanging, trying to think of the words that would explain to him why my dream of buying my mom a house and having money in my pocket was worth facing his 　　11　　 to me．

　　“How much are you going to make at this job, son?” He demanded．“3.5 dollars an hour．” I replied．“Well,” he asked, “Is ＄3.5 an hour the price of a dream?”

　　That question, the plainness of it, laid bare for me the difference between wanting something right now and having a goal．I dedicated myself to sports that summer and with the year I was hired by the Pittsburgh Pirates to play baseball, and was 　　12　　 a ＄20,000 contract．I signed with the Denver Broncos in 1998 for ＄1.7 million, and bought my mother the house of my dreams．