I was just reading the press release Alabama sent out today about the death of John Mark Stallings, former Alabama coach Gene Stallings' son who had Down syndrome. He died today at age 46 from complications related to a congenital heart defect.

They included a quote by Gene Stallings from earlier this year about how his son's life affected the way he handled his players:

"I had a whole lot less tolerance for the gifted and a whole lot more tolerance for the guy that wasn't quite as gifted," Gene Stallings told a reporter in January of 2008. "With Johnny, I saw him struggle to walk, struggle to kick a ball, struggle to do everything that he did. So, I had a little tolerance for the guys that had to struggle. If you had talent and didn't lay it on the line, I didn't have much tolerance for you. The less talented guy can't play on Saturdays. But he can get you ready to play on Saturdays. I wanted the guys who played on Saturday to have an appreciation for that guy who got them there."

I liked that. There's our thought for the day. I think there's some application in that statement for all of us in our everyday lives about appreciating what we've got...or something like that...