A Two-out Rally

The last pitch was thrown. A called strike. A two-out rally had ended as suddenly as that faint glimmer of hope had surfaced with two walks and now runners at 1st and 2nd. Faces turned down, hope became despair and heavy feet kicked dust in the air. The baseball season ended sooner than every child on the team had expected. A winning season, ended with a first round tournament loss. A season full of wins, makes losing so much more difficult to except. Expressionless faces, a few tears, kids slowly walked to their parents cars. Their emotions much larger than the ball field, now only seen through the rear view mirror.

It is hard as a parent to see our children lose. The disappointment in their eyes tug at our hearts. We console or kids and try to impart wisdom to help lessen the sting. Little do our kids know how much of the pain we share. We search for the right words. We search for that perfect moment where we can teach our children that, yes, losing is disappointing. We stress those magical moments that occur during the season that will forever be irreplaceable. Moments that will bring us back to the game and the possibility that we will again face the reality of losing.

And sometimes life replaces our words and events unfold that truly teach us that a game lost is, well, nothing more than an opportunity to look forward to future games and future wins. We get lost in the emotions of our games until reality sets in and we learn the truth to our disappointment...it's just a game.

The disappointment continued to hang in the air. Kade's emotions still difficult for him to handle. Then real tragedy hit. A brief email suddenly brought perpestive to all of us. Kade's friend became critically ill. Suddenly the game seems so long ago and the unexpected turns of life hit us right in the face. We feel lost.

We tuck our children into bed. Our usual prayers take on a new direction. No longer does striking out feel that bad. We take time for each other. We take a moment for Kade's friend. The loss of a game now seems simple, but our earlier hope for that two-out rally is rediscovered in a more meaningful situation.