When St. Louis Rams center Jason Brown decided to leave the last $12.5 million of his NFL contract on the table and farm 1,000 acres in North Carolina instead, his agent was shocked.
“You’re making the biggest mistake of your life,” the agent said.
“No I’m not,” the highest-paid center in football replied.
Brown was only 29. Presumably he could look forward to many more years of stardom and many more millions of dollars. His $37.5 million dollar contract with the Rams still had a year to run and he was sure to get another large contract to keep playing pro football when that contract ended.
But sometimes in life, you leave the money on the table and take the path less traveled. You decide to do what you really want to do. You do what makes you feel good about yourself.
And Jason Brown has every right to feel good about himself.
He is doing what he feels he should – growing food for people in need. According to an item in the Daily Kos this morning:
He grows sweet potatoes and other vegetables and donates his harvest to food pantries. According to the News & Observer, he has given away 46,000 pounds of sweet potatoes and 10,000 pounds of cucumbers this fall.
You have to admit that’s more important than football.
Click for the Daily Kos story.
