Wedding/Game

It was 4:00 in the morning yesterday when my mind once again woke me up with stressful thoughts. For a few days I had been debating on what to do: go to my old friend's wedding in Indiana, or go to the first game of my son's Fall baseball season (the one where my husband is finally head-coach).  What to do, what to do?  I'm so distraught over what to do. Either way someone will be disappointed.  I don't want to upset my friend and not go to her wedding.  I had already told her I would be there, but the game schedule had not come out yet.  I had been telling myself that Tony will have lots of games, I could miss one...but this was the opening game of the season and my husband's debut as head coach.

 

So, I got out of bed, did some thinking and decided to send my friend a message letting her know that I couldn't make it and, "I'm so sorry; I hope you have a wonderful day; etc., etc." I was racked with guilt.  Will she ever talk to me again? Did I make the right decision?  I just didn't know, but I couldn't do both, so, the game it is. 

As my household woke up, I informed Tony, who gave me an emphatic fist pump. My husband finally expressed to me that he couldn't believe I was having trouble with the decision in the first place, the obvious place for me was on the sidelines cheering on the little Angels (they are, actually, the Angels).  The morning ensued...  I emailed the team the treat schedule, went to Walmart to buy Gatorade and off we went to the diamonds.  

A few kids were up and got some hits and the game was off to a good start, even if the thermostat read 97 degrees.  Then Tony walks up to the plate.

WHAM - the ball goes flying out into the field and Tony is running like a freight train.  A TRIPLE!  He has NEVER hit a TRIPLE before.  The crowd is going crazy! Tony gets to third base and knuckle bumps the baseline coach with a smile on his face like I've never seen!  The next kid comes up and hits a single, and Tony runs in.  The rest of the team cheers him as he walks to the bench - they are all patting him on the back and telling him, "awesome hit; good job; way to go Tony!"  (I've never seen him so happy). 

The game goes on and Tony is now pitching.  He has perfect form, takes a deep breath and...STRIKE...STRIKE...STRIKE!  

"No way," I think to myself.  Then another! Three outs later and no hits!  His next two up-to-bats resulted in two RBIs!  Then, in the fourth inning, he's playing third base and CRACK! a line drive. Tony stopped it like a brick wall and beams the ball to first base.  What a play!

Angels win 8 to 2 and Tony receives a much deserved "game ball" from Coach Dad...   What a way to start off the season!

And to think, I actually considered missing this. 

Braided Birds

Like most moms, I never feel there is enough time in the day to get everything done. We work, cook, clean, take care of our kids, husbands, households, bills, etc., sometimes all at the same time. Unfortunately, busy schedules rarely take our own needs and desires into account. I found myself pondering these things one day while sitting in my car on my lunch hour.

I was on my way to the bank and simply pulled over into a parking spot and parked my car. I thought to myself, “This is a rare opportunity for me to just have a few minutes of quiet time.” I turned off the engine, put my seat back a little, closed my eyes and … my phone rang. Annoyed, I answered my husband’s call with an edge to my voice. He was asking whether I had made it to the bank; what needed to be picked up for dinner; and what plans were in place for the evening. We argued a bit. My poor husband simply called at the wrong moment.

After getting off the phone, I leaned back again (angrily noting that now I only had a few minutes of my lunch left and still had to make it to the bank) and gazed up at the sky. There were three birds flying above, weaving in and out of each other’s flight lines. I imagined that if each were holding a ribbon, they would have made a beautiful braid.

Watching these braided birds brought me back to the present. It was a beautiful moment. For a few short minutes, they represented the three most important aspects of my life: family/work/self. We all fly around weaving in and out of our daily routines, but need to find time for ourselves. That is the only way to have balance and peace.

The birds flew off in three separate directions as I started my car to get to the bank – with a slight smile on my face.