Move On: Dana

In a pivotal moment in the greatest animated movie ever, The Lion King, Rafiki the baboon hits Simba in the head with his staff. When Simba says "What was that for?" He responds " It doesn't matter it's in the past". He sums up the point by saying “The past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it or learn from it.” It's great advice for everyone because bad things are gonna happen to each and every one of us in life. The question is how will you respond to it? As the great poet Fifty Cent says we can "survive the shots or die.” Which means to me, we can allow it (whatever IT is) to either consume and kill us on the inside or SURVIVE and fight on another day. But how long are we allowed to grieve or gain closure from the problems we've gone through? Really, to me, it depends on the issue. A bad relationship or death of a loved one or fall out with friends, all these things take time and don't get resolved immediately. When it comes to something more frivolous such as...oh, I don't know...a coach not living up to the hype then bolting for a non power five Texas team.. how much time do we get? I keep hearing people all over saying "Get over Dana”, “quit bringing him up” or “let it die" . I feel their sentiments because it is over and we have a #NewEra here with a coach we are really excited for in Neal Brown! But I still firmly stand behind what I've said a million times "I'm allowed to be frustrated about last season until I see this seasons first kickoff.” I felt that way about Skylar Howard and the underwhelming finish we had that year too and I still believe it. With Dana, he was here 8 years.. almost a decade and for all the patience and turmoil and ups and downs for it to end like that?! For the hype and support each and every year and for it all to feel wasted, then to hear little things he’s saying after he arrives at his new job... oh no, people ARE allowed to be irritated! Now I'll be clear, I can and have let it go, I have moved on but for those that haven't yet, I completely understand. Remember wise old Rafiki says “The way I see it, you can either run from it or learn from it.” One cannot learn if they do not analyze to figure out how it went wrong then adjust themselves accordingly. Most of the time reflection and analyzation can bring anger, frustration.. just EMOTIONS until it is refined into something manageable enough to just MOVE ON. To move on these things do take time and I feel fans have until next season starts to come to grips with the long relationship we've had with Dana. FANS are allowed! But players and staff have to get to work now. Fortunately for us we have what seems to be outstanding leadership from our #NewEra coaching staff and that should accelerate the process. Either way Mountaineer nation will show up and show out for that first game in September and continue to support our Mountaineers.