It’s weird how the moments that bring life lessons are never noticed to be doing so in that exact second but instead take a good amount of time to resonate with our selves. Playing baseball has been a constant string of these moments and events that have brought lessons to me that could never be taught in a controlled setting. Natural occurrences that force your character to show and grow and expand to new horizons, all being brought forth by a simple game that has been around since the late 1800’s. Teaching me more than I’ll probably ever realize.
The first lesson had been trying to be shown to me for the longest time, and it comes in a cliché form of saying; “cherish the time you have playing this game, before you know it, it will be gone.” Anyone who has played any sport at a competitive level has heard a coach say this once upon a time, and usually it gets shrugged off and ignored cause everyone has heard it before. But now, sitting here halfway done with college and now have watched two different senior classes take their step onto the field for the final time its finally hitting home. The time I have left to play this game that has blessed me with so many memories, is coming to a close and the lesson it is teaching me now, is that this finish line in this portion of my life isn’t really a finish line. Instead, it’s a new race beginning with another finish line coming down the road.
"Get to versus have to" is a phrase I heard once in a video and it kind of breezed over me until a summer teammate of mine lost his life in a suicide. About two month after his passing, was the beginning of baseball season and I saw other teammates of mine and his closest friends posting nothing but wishes of him being on the field either with them or against them just one last time. In that moment the phrase consumed my attitude, that every day there is an early workout, a long hot practice, a meeting that seems unimportant or tedious remembering the simple phrase of get to versus have to helps. The simple fact stands that every time I practice, train, meet, or workout I get to. It’s a blessing, I don’t have to do this every day, but I get to. I have the ability to, which isn’t true for so many others. The same goes for class, or really anything that seems obsolete and unneeded. I GET to do it, it’s a blessing and it’s a gift given to me.
Finally and most needed, it taught me how people can come and go and its not always a bad thing to only have a short stint with a person. There may never have been a bad day spent with this person, or group, or team and then it splits up and it happens. Baseball doesn’t just stop and you don’t keep the same team forever, constantly meeting and getting to know and befriend so many amazing guys for however long is a lesson. People will leave, some have to in order to better themselves, others have no choice, their time is just up in that current stage of their life. Teams change. Being around five different classes of seniors between high school and college, four all-star teams, numerous little travel ball teams and a scout team for summer with an ever changing roster to now having lived in two other states than my home to play baseball, the kids and teammates are incredible. I had to leave my best friends in Arizona for school and ball in Oregon and sucked, but I met new life long friends to join the ones in Arizona. I just gave up an entire summer break with my friends and family to play in Colorado, and I am fortunate enough to have met guys here that have changed not only my baseball, but also my life.
Sacrifices have been made for this sport, but not one has gone unrewarded. Thus teaching me the biggest lesson I have been taught, no reward is unearned, sure something can fall in your lap but that’s not a reward, that’s a handout. Sacrifice, dedication, and hard work are never unnoticed, no matter what someone thinks. There isn’t a single limit put on you by yourself or someone else you can’t break with determination. I have seen some people do crazy things. So thank you baseball, for everything you have taught me, thank you mom and dad for letting me play this game, thank you to my brothers for teaching me how to play it properly, and thank you God for the blessing that is baseball.
