Up is the only direction to go

“Up is the only direction to go” is the advice Russ McCoy gives his young son, Travis McCoy, during a trip to a state championship game. Years later, Travis recalls the words as a source of courage whenever he was afraid to try or doubted his ability. The expression’s lasting force lies in its transformation from a father’s brief reassurance into a personal guide—and, finally, a way for Travis to understand returning home as his next step forward.

Origin and Meaning

Travis remembers the phrase in a conversation with Russ about which people and moments shaped him. The memory is specific: Travis had never seen a building taller than a couple of stories, and the two were surrounded by skyscrapers. Russ knelt before him, placed his hands on his shoulders, looked him in the eye, and told him that up was the only direction to go.

The setting gives the advice a concrete image of height and possibility. For Travis, however, the words are not simply a promise of success. He says he thought of them whenever fear or self-doubt made him hesitate. The phrase becomes a portable reminder to attempt what seems beyond reach.

Travis’s Recollection and Return

When Travis brings the memory back to Russ, he gives the old advice a new application: “Right now, my ‘up’ is back in Texas.” His use of the phrase turns upward movement away from a literal climb or a general pursuit of achievement. At this point in his life, moving forward means returning to Texas.

The declaration also gives the expression a role in Travis’s changing understanding of home. His return is not presented as retreat from ambition; he frames it as the direction his life now needs to take. The word “up” carries the earlier sense of daring to go beyond what is familiar, but its destination has changed.

Father and Son

The conversation makes the phrase evidence of a bond Russ had underestimated. Russ says he had not thought anything he told Travis ever mattered. Travis answers that everything Russ said mattered, though he did not always listen. The exchange distinguishes the impact of a lesson from a son’s willingness to follow it at the time: the advice stayed with Travis even when their relationship was strained.

In that moment, the remembered words help the two men recognize what passed between them. Russ’s gesture and sentence belong to Travis’s childhood, but Travis’s recollection returns them to his father as an adult. The phrase therefore serves both as encouragement and as a point of connection in their reconciliation.

Narrative Significance

The maxim’s meaning develops through delayed recognition. First, it is a father’s response to a child facing an unfamiliar world of skyscrapers; later, it is a principle Travis carries into moments of doubt; finally, it gives language to his choice to come back to Texas. Its direction remains constant while its meaning becomes more personal: going upward means continuing onward, and, for Travis, that can mean choosing home.