May 15, 2019 I spent most of Friday afternoon not-so-secretly hoping the rain would continue and my son’s baseball game would be rained out. I love watching Jake play, but the weather was cool, damp and windy, and nothing makes me more miserable than being cold. So, it was with great dismay that I read the text from Jake’s coach indicating the field was good and the game was on. Jake’s team from Brushton-Moira was playing against a North Franklin team. They were playing in Fort Covington, the opposing team’s home field. We arrived at the park, and Jake joined his team for pre-game warm-ups. My husband and I claimed seats in the bleachers. It quickly became clear that most of the people seated around us were supporting the home team. As the game began and the first member of Jake’s team stepped up to the plate, the group behind us cheered on the player they came to see, a child who was playing left field, encouraging him to be attentive to the batter and ball. Then, as the lead-off batter made contact and hit a grounder toward the short stop, a woman in the group behind me cheered the little guy on. “Great hit,” she shouted. While the short stop wasn’t able to get to the ball and get it to first base on time to make the out, the woman behind me praised him, too. “Way to keep it in front of you! Nice throw!” For the entire game, she continued to cheer on every child from both teams. At one point, she explained her somewhat odd cheering practices. “(A young family member) once told me, ‘you’re only supposed to cheer for our team,’” she told the people seated with her. “But they’re so little! They all deserve to have people cheering for them!” My husband and I were soon cheering for both teams. Sports are, by their nature, adversarial. It’s easy to view opponents as almost enemies, as those you hope to defeat. Yet here was this woman offering love to all these children, even those who were opponents. This woman embodied Jesus’ call to love one another and love our enemies, and her love set an example for others to follow. Despite the cold, it was a beautiful day at the ballpark. On a related note, happy belated Mother’s Day to all the mothers, grandmothers and women who provide maternal support to others. Your selfless love is beautiful and inspiring. |
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