A Season to Remember


A ragtag group of 14 and 15-year-old boys played together on a perpetually losing baseball team. 

It wasn’t like they didn’t have talent. The first baseman was tall for his age and had an arm reach that could snag a line drive before it ever had a chance to make it to the outfield. 

Then there was the outfielder who never complained about his position and could run faster than the opponent’s hit—robbing many of an RBI score. 

The stud second baseman was a poor kid from the city’s low income housing. He looked like every other player in his new uniform. But one of the team moms always had a concession stand burger for him after the game.

But the new head coach had big ideas for playing small ball. He’d vex the opponents with an unexpected bunt, scoring a run from third base. And then he'd call for a fake bunt when they were anticipating one—having his batter swing hard at the last second.




The coach also brought in an ancient pitching coach—he was over 80 years old; the boys must have wondered what century he actually played in. But he knew his stuff and taught the pitchers how to read a batter and then throw a diabolical pitch. 

The left handed pitcher’s mom sat in the stands squarely behind home plate, never missing a game nor a single pitch. 

Yet, never a word was uttered by her or any of the parents against an umpire. There was honor in the stands, and respect in the dugout.





Years have passed. Those boys are hard-working men now. Some are married, some are daddies, and a few took a bit longer to grow up.

None are baseball players. 

The left handed pitcher’s mom died of cancer, the mom who made sure the poor kid ate dinner, barely survived heart surgery. 

But for a special season, they all came together to combine their strengths and cover for one another’s weaknesses and they did something they never expected: they won the city championship. It was a season to remember.


Photo credits: #2 Jon Eckert #4 Francisco Gonzales Unsplash

Popular posts from this blog

Dreaming the Dream

Image
Dreaming big dreams about the future is easy for kids. The only thing standing in the way is time.  Kid’s dreams are not about skills, or opportunities, or even practicality. Those things come much later.  My grandson hopes to be professional soccer player when he grows up. This week, a small piece of his dream came true when his Boys and Girls Club was invited to participate in pre-game activities with the Seattle Sounders Football Club.  He got to suit up in a real jersey and walk on the field with a real pro player. Imagine a young soccer player looking up to who he hopes to be one day. If you haven’t taken the time to talk to a child about their future dreams—you should.  They believe. As we get older we sometimes forget that dreams fuel our hopes—and that's something we all need. So, do you still dream? Or have you left those childhood thoughts behind?  S pending time with children will  inspire you to believe agai
Read more

Sexy Selfies: Posting for attention

Image
We’ve all seen the “selfie” pix on Facebook—those self-taken images in varying forms of dress (or undress). Usually they’re female poses taken in public restrooms, dressing rooms, bedrooms, and lots of what used to be private space. Thanks to selfies and social media, it’s open season on privacy—and modesty. Do you have a social media “friend” who has become a serial selfie? Most often selfies are young girls sharing their sexiness with the world. Serial selfies post hundreds of pictures, so it’s hard to ignore the display. The question is why do they do it. While I don’t approve of the sexy display of serial selfies, insecurity is at the root. Selfies collect “likes” to boost morale. The attention received is like a balm to their broken spirits. But the dark side of exhibitionism is feeling used—not unlike the girl searching for love and giving away her body in hopes of finding love. Selfies seek approval. They're locked in a perpetual cycle of posting pi
Read more

Wild or Tame? Which One Are You?

Image
Finally! Research that explains why I act the way I do. Columbia University’s Motivational Science Center studied people’s activities and what brought them the most happiness. Even more telling were how those activities changed as they aged. Twenty-somethings tend to equate happiness with high-energy activities. Words like excited and ecstatic are usually attached to spontaneous things—even risky things—and living life full throttle.  Researchers labeled this Promotion Motivation —the urge to take chances, including career moves that may not work out. Happiness comes from happenings—the more happenings, the more happiness. By age forty, adults associate happiness with things running smoothly at work and home. It’s also about feeling secure in relationships. Keeping healthy matters more too. This behavior is called Prevention Motivation —and people are more concerned with preserving and maintaining the things they value. It appears that time ofte
Read more