Everybody has a story.
Those who played for Hall of Fame coach and Dolphins legend Don Shula remember being summoned to his office during his 26 years patrolling the Miami Dolphins' sidelines.
Those memories came flooding back for his former players in the hours after Shula's death on Monday.
And while the admonishments in his office were difficult to stomach, several of his former players spoke of how Shula also could leave them feeling appreciated, and how he created an environment where working hard and preparing diligently and doing the right thing would earn respect from an iconic figure whose mere presence could intimidate.
"I got called into his office numerous occasions, when I said something in the press he didn't like," said former Pro Bowl offensive lineman Keith Sims, one of six former Dolphins who shared memories of Shula in conversations with The Miami Herald on Monday.
"He could break you down, but he had a unique ability to build you up and light that fire. So you felt, 'I don't want to disappoint that man.'"
For Manny Fernandez, a stalwart defensive lineman on the Dolphins' dominant teams of the early 1970s, one Shula office meeting will stay with him forever:
"There was one day (in 1973 or 1974) I had missed curfew and finally got in about 5 in the morning ... There was a kid knocking on my door and he said Shula wants me in his office at 6:30 in the morning.
"Shula started into me like you wouldn't believe, (yelling), 'I don't know who you think you are!' And on and on. He finally had to stop to catch his breath.
I said, 'Are you going to talk me to death or are you going to fine me?' He started laughing. I said, 'I should know better. I'm going to fine you.' Then he sent a kid to walk me back to my room and told him to knock on my door every 15 minutes until it's time for practice."
Fernandez told the kid to do what Shula told him, and then promptly went downstairs to Jake Scott's and Dick Anderson's room to resume sleeping before practice.
Former Dolphins running back Troy Stradford, who played his first four seasons for Shula, was ordered to report to Shula's office only once, and he knew it was coming.
"We had played the Bears, and Mike Singletary was calling out every single play we're about to run," Stradford said. "After the game, me being young, I said to a reporter, 'Wow, our offense is predictable because Singletary was calling out every play.'
"I remember waking up the next morning, reading the article and said, 'Uh oh, I'm in trouble.' I knew coach Shula read every newspaper before we even woke up. I said I have to leave early and get to camp in case coach wants to talk to me."
