Just Warming Up

I love baseball.  I love everything there is about baseball.  The smell of stale beer and hot dogs on a sweltering 95 degree day.  The crack of the bat when you know its going to be a home run even before it clears the left center wall.  The way a pitcher tips his hat in acknowledgement to the crowd as they give him a standing O for pitching 7 shutout innings.  I love it all.  But the game has changed for me.  For the past year and a half I have seen this game I grew up loving in a whole new light.  Because 18 months ago I became a mother.  February 15, 2009 my son, Eli, was introduce to the world and into this crazy, fanatical baseball obsessed family.  The game became more than just a game, it became a guide to bettering myself and my family.  I started to look deeper into what the game of baseball and it's players represents.  I believe we can learn a great deal from this game as it relates to life and family.  Just like the game itself is a challenging feat so is this juggling act we call life.  I am a working mother, a devoted wife, a dedicated daughter and granddaughter, and a loyal friend.  Balancing these different roles is often exhausting but none the less rewarding.  When a player reaches base, or a pitcher pitches a 1, 2, 3 inning, it is a feeling of satisfaction.  They know that they have just contributed to the ultimate goal, the very reason why they put on their uniform to being with, and that is to win.  Is that not the same with life, to win.  Now, I am in no way suggesting that by winning we must be perfect.  Far from it.  Only that we do the very best we can with the life we have been given.  Just as players are responsible for the conditioning of their bodies and the honing of their skill, we are responsible for not only ourselves but for those who have been given to us.  Being first time parents my husband and I have mastered the trial by error approach to parenting.  From taking 20 minutes to figure out how to operate a stroller to not panicking every time our son sneezes, this past year has been a time of growth and rediscovery.  So, I guess that's the purpose of this blog.  To take my two passions in life, throw them together and see what comes of it.  I am rediscovering this great game through the eyes of my son.  And as I sit here watching my husband try to teach him how to switch hit (reminder, he's only 18 months old) all I can think is that this is going to be a beautiful ride and I can't wait to see how it plays out.  Oh, and one more thing...GO YANKEES!!