So, I didn’t have time to pound out a long post today because, despite hitting the pavement a little after 5:00 this morning so I could get a good run in and get started on work early, I had to knock off by about 3:30 this afternoon, because … it was the first day of practice for my daughter Claire and her 9-and-under softball team. The picture above is the two of us last summer, when she was in T-ball and I was pretending I knew what I was doing as an assistant coach. I’m still pretending to know what I’m doing as a assistant coach, but this year the girls have graduated to live pitching – which will be an adventure, I suspect. The season actually starts next week, so we’ll know sooner than later.
Funny thing is, I caught myself feeling momentarily disappointed that I didn’t have time for a real blog post today. There is, after all, a lot going on in the world, what with Pres. Obama having just launched his bid for reelection and Attorney General Eric Holder announcing yesterday that the administration will not be prosecuting Khalid Sheikh Muhammad in the civilian criminal justice system (see Joy-Ann Reid’s excellent explanation of how Congressional obstructionism led to that decision, here); not to mention the conflicts in Ivory Coast and Libya … But then I arrived at school to pick up Claire before practice, and she literally bounded down the stairs with a smile bigger than Christmas morning, like going to softball practice was the greatest thing ever in the history of the world. So, off we went, no regrets.
It’s a new season, with new teammates and coaches, but there’s one constant: These girls love what they’re doing, love to be with each other, love playing the game … and maybe more than anything else, love the fact that we grown ups (there’re another four assistant coaches in addition to our head coach, Veronica) want to be there with them. And, that, people … that really is more important than politics.
Yeah, I’ll get back to politics, most likely tomorrow. But today I really didn’t care about any of that stuff. It was worth getting up way too freaking early; worth cramming as much work as I could into an unreasonably small number of hours; and most definitely worth eschewing politics for one day, just to see those kids welcoming a new softball season the way only nine year old girls can.
The rest of it will wait, won’t it?
© 2011 David P. von Ebers. All rights reserved.
it sure will! that's awesome and disgustingly cute.
ReplyDeleteYes, she is!
ReplyDeleteNever apologize for having priorities. Some day, she'll go off to college and you'll miss her and cherish the memories. No one cherishes the memory of a single day of ordinary work.
ReplyDelete