I haven't really mentioned much about the athletic pursuits of my children. As a kid and a teenager I personally tried very hard (much to my father's chagrin) to be an athlete. I was okay but never anything exceptional. I sort of got close in High School (good old Ansbach High School - http://www.ansb-hs.eu.dodea.edu/) with wrestling because it was something that small people could potentially do well. I suppose if my high school would have had more of a male gymnastics program I would have gotten into that. Instead, wrestling was the sport I came the closest to being really good at and I trained hard to do well at it. I would get up and run every morning before school and I trained in the off-season. Hey, when you're 4'10" (yes, I can hear the song from A Chorus Line running in my head even now) you've got to do something that takes advantage of your size.
Of course, I still got picked on (even by my own team mates) and in the spring I tried my hand at baseball. I played in the outfield (mainly center) because I could catch and I had a strong arm so I could throw really well but I was terrible at infield (a bouncing ball to the face left me a little skittish about grounders) and I couldn't hit very well at all. It wasn't until years later that I found out the main reason was because I had needed glasses - my astigmatism just wasn't letting me see the ball clearly enough to hit it! I really have to hand it to my father and his patience with his marginally athletic son. He even coached my little leauge team back when we were in California (I was about 10) because no one else wanted to coach and even though he was a master sargeant (and had a good degree of responsibility) working another job in the evenings and raising me by himself he found time to coach my team. If I couldn't hit in high school, I was even more dismal in elementary school but my dad had a good sense of humor about it.
So, it is only fitting that in the circle of life I now find myself an assistant coach of my boys' little league team. Its very cute as its only a step up from t-ball. The coaches pitch to the players on their own team while the other team is in the field. We pitch until the kid gets a hit and then they advance one base (two if they get it over the fence), the last batter knocks in everyone who is still on base. Its a step up from the shark like feeding frenzy of t-ball when all the kids go after every ball. Now we're teaching them about skills and positions and they can make catches and tag the other players out if they tag the runner or the base so in that way its also a step up from t-ball.
Sarah has been on the fringes of wanting to play baseball for a while. She has been the only girl in the "Fall Ball" clinics in her age group and she was the only girl in the 5th to 7th grade level Winter Skills clinic. Towards the end of the clinic she had made up her mind that she wanted to try her hand at baseball. However it became clear to Amy and me that she didn't have the arm strength (or the bat strength) to compete with the boys and she would probably end up batting last and/or sitting on the bench. As someone who did that his first year of high school baseball I didn't want the same thing to happen to her. Sooooooo, we used our powers of persuasion (Amy's really good at it) to convince her to give softball a go. She now plays for the "Epic Red Hots" (a name she's not all that thrilled about, our little environmentalist wanted "Red Hawks") and she's one of three fifth grade girls on the team. She's a good player, not a standout but she's smart and she's getting better all the time.
Well, last night we had an "Epic" game. It was going pretty well at the beginning and Sarah was making some good plays. Her friend Gabby (another fifth grader) was at short stop and Sarah was in left field. She's smart and she knows to cover third base but her attention wanders. Things were going well through the fourth inning as our starting pitcher kept the other team to four runs and we were up by six. However, in the next two innings they scored seven runs and we only scored two more. I have to preface what happened next by saying that I've been at all of Sarah's games and some of her practices and I wanted to help out. Not that I want to coach another team mind you but I offered to keep the score book so the assistant coach Kathy could focus on coaching.
Well, we get to the bottom of the sixth inning and its 7:20 and we think the game is over - we won by one run, 12 - 11. WRONG! In the confusion of the fifth inning (it was a little crazy as they were scoring a bunch of runs and we got a double play) I missed a run - THE OTHER TEAM HAD 12! So here it was, tied up and Sarah was first up to bat.
Now you have to understand, Sarah is not a power hitter. She has a few things going her way, she's fast and she's a lefty. Her coaches have been trying to get her to bunt because if she lays it down to the left side she'll be almost to first base before they even get the ball, thats how fast she is. Earlier in the game she had a single, a strike out, and a strike out. She's not an agressive hitter and she sometimes lets pitches go by. However, AND HERE'S WHERE THE STORY TAKES OFF, its the bottom of the sixth, the last inning, the score is tied, no outs and Sarah is up to bat!
Well, she fouled one off, got a ball and then swung and missed. At this point I'm praying and crossing my fingers ("just let her get on base, just let her get on base") when she gives a hard swing and the ball catches the bottom of the bat and thuds down hard into the soft dirt two feet from home plate - and just sits there. Sarah takes off like a shot and before they can get the throw out she's on first base!
Next up is Sarah's team mate Bridget. She takes a ball and then one of the pitches gets away from the catcher - and Sarah's off like a shot. She's usually hesitant to steal bases but this time she listens to the first base coach and she's off!!!!!! She makes it safe to second. Here we are, no outs, Sarah is the winning run on second base and Bridget's up. After Bridget is the strongest part of our lineup so its only a matter of time.
Bridget hits the ball and it goes to the second baseman who then proceeds to throw Bridget out at first. In the meantime Sarah runs to third and the first baseman throws to third but is too late and in the meantime, OVERTHROWS THE BASE!!!! At this point we are all yelling at Sarah to run home, run home, run home! She rounds third and rushes into home and we're all holding our breath hoping she's fast enough and that she won't be thrown out! Sarah jumps onto home plate with both feet and gives her "rocker hands" salute! RRRREEEEEDDDDD HOOOOOTTTTSSSSSS WIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!
The best part was seeing all her teammates give her hugs and high fives and after they lined up and congratulated each other on the game the team did a victory lap of the bases and Sarah led them all!!!!! At the end of the game Coach Burke awarded Sarah the game ball! She has not let go of it since.
My eyes still have tears in them as I think about what just happened. I don't know if Jeff understands just how imortant his small gesture was to Sarah. She has had an up and down year and it has had far too many downs. She needed this little bit of self affirmation to remind her that she has so many wonderful attributes and that she is an incredible little girl. Yes, her environmental work is great and she received an award that has never been given to someone her age - and yet, to be the winning run and have her team mates think she is awesome, even for just one day makes such a difference in her confidence.
It doesn't matter what they do for their day job - coaches are teachers and they can make as big a difference to our children as we classroom teachers do every day. They can build up our children's confidence or they can tear it down. Jeff just reminded me so powerfully that the support we give our young charges - whether they are the best and the brightest, the stars, the natural borns or the neophytes - is so important and makes all the difference. I only hope I can remember this lesson as I work with the children of others.
So, sorry its not about cycling this time, but a lesson for us all nevertheless - our words, our gestures, our shows of kindness make all the difference - pass it on!
Stay well and I'll see you on the road!
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