Spring Means BASEBALL!!!

I love baseball.  Watching the 1985 World Series posing my brother Nathan's favorite Kansas City Royals against my dad and brother Aaron's favorite St Louis Cardinals, was one of my first memories of watching the television.  I also LOVED playing baseball with boyhood friend Matt Lange with the Independent League's Dubuque Cubs (I remember having to go door-to-door to sell three boxes of 48 candy bars filled with Carmel, Almond, and Krunch bars for 50 cents a piece, in order to pay for my uniform).  When we moved out to the boonies, I loved playing with the Praire League team of the Key West Yankees, and also the Key West All-stars traveling team.  From there I moved into playing high school baseball with the Hempstead Mustangs.  

I'd even share with you my stunning career highlights, but in reality I was always good enough to make the team, but was not really all that good.  My stellar baseball career ended my junior year when the varsity coach (who I still love and respect) gave me an ultimatum in playing varsity ball for him.  I had always dreamed of serving at Camp Forest Springs, and the summer after my junior year, I was accepted to serve for two weeks as a volunteer on the maintenance department.  Upon asking Coach Core for the two weeks off, he said that I either serve my God or I play baseball.  That ultimatum ended my baseball career that day, with no regrets at all.    

And lest you think that I am going to live vicariously through my son by putting pressure on him to play baseball, think again.  Thanks to Jim and Julie Quandt, Gideon has a pretty cool baseball glove.  Today I bought Gideon a hard ball baseball, and after he woke up from his nap, out we went.   

As you can see, he's up on the balls of his feet and has just come up with the ball.

Now you can see the kid's impeccable form.  With the Dan Quissenberry side-arm, glove over his hear to limit the raucous cheers coming from inside the house, and feet parallel, I'd say he's ready.  

Although the ball is mid-air, I think we need to work on putting one foot in front of the other and following through.  My rambling is done for now.  Time to get cleaned up from working out and get ready for one of our teen's musical tonight.