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“My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person.

He believed in me.”

Jim Valvano

Number 37 is standing in the on-deck circle. Watching the new pitcher; swinging at each practice pitch. His father leans into the fence. “Don’t go out there and look stupid!”

Number 37 stops swinging. His dad snaps a picture.

In a flash, I hear something from ten years ago… Me grumbling during one of Marissa’s 5th grade volleyball games. I turned to Ken griping that Marissa’s team was playing like a bunch of girls. Of course, they were a bunch of girls.

I wanted to tap number 37’s dad on the shoulder… I wanted to share how I nearly lost my daughter by becoming bleached out by things like bleachers. But I didn’t have the courage my 14 year old had. After the shut-out game which his team won 31 to 0, Ken asked Kyle what the coach was saying to him on the pitchers mound.

 “He asked me why I didn’t pick off the runner. Why I didn’t even try.”

Ken let Kyle know that he too was wondering the same thing. Kyle smiled one of those half-grins while tossing his baseball gear into the back of our car. He rested his elbow on the cooler; took a swig of water then wiped his chin. “I told the coach I didn’t pick him off because it was morally wrong. I couldn’t do it.”

Talk about a winning attitude. It seems our youth know the value of a child’s spirit. This post isn’t necessarily one of my funnier ones, but I thought a grand-slam was no less cheery. After all, sometimes the grass truly is greener from the other side of the fence.