My
adrenaline is pumping and I am so nervous and anxious, I am almost shaking.
I’ve been playing since I was eight years old, why was this time any different?
But it was different. I was making my way up to the batter’s box and my at bat
didn’t really matter, we were up by a lot and it wouldn’t matter if I got on
base or not. But it mattered to me; this was my first varsity at bat.
We were
in Chinle, playing the Wildcats. I was dressed for varsity, but it wasn’t
unusual, I did sometimes. I even got a few innings in the field in previous
games which was pretty nerve racking, but nothing like this. I was only a
sophomore, so I didn’t expect a whole lot of playing time on varsity. I was
pretty much the foul ball boy, but there were a few sophomores who were
everyday starters, so I always wanted a chance and worked hard to get one. This
was it, this was my chance. So there I was, little me, super nervous and just
hoping I don’t mess up.
I don’t think I messed up too bad,
I don’t think I struck out, but I am pretty sure I didn’t get a hit. Maybe I
got walked? To tell the truth, I don’t even remember what happened. I remember
everything up to it, but I don’t remember the actual at bat or if I even got on
base. I really let the situation get the best of me. I wasn’t living in the
moment and just going out there and doing what I do. I was so focused on not
messing up, and I don’t even remember if I did! I wasn’t willing to take a
chance and have the possibility of something good happening.
More often than not, people live in
fear of messing up. Not just in their first time trying something new, but
every time they do it. If your attitude toward and activity is this, your
attitude could quite possibly be the exact same toward life. Too scared to take
a risk, because it could end up bad, and you don’t want that, do you? That’s
not the way to live life and go about things. Sometimes playing it safe is
good, but if you play it safe every time, you might miss out on one of the most
amazing experiences of your life.
The next chance I got, I got a hit.
It wasn’t anything great, just a ground ball that found the gap between the
third basemen and the shortstop, but it was an amazing experience and I
definitely am glad I took a chance and swung at the pitch, without the fear of
missing, but with the hope that I would get a hit. And I did get a hit, and it
was awesome. I don’t ever go up to bat in fear of something bad happening, and
I live my life the same way, because when you take a risk, you never know
what’s going to happen. You could hit a home run if you just swing.
Michael, I thought you had a neat way to start your blog. You wrote it in a way that invites us right into the story and I feel as if that was a great way to start!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, reading your baseball story made me remember times that I felt very similar to the way you felt. There has been sooo many times that I was scared, nervous, and anxious about doing a certain thing. Every single time I look back on these moments, I wish that I would have not let these emotions take over and just had fun with it. You mentioned that in your blog, so I'm glad I'm not the only one that feels like this. I completely agree with you that we need to take more risks and not let fear overtake us and ruin many great opportunities. Like Mrs. Caffey was telling us, we need to learn how to not “play it safe”, and instead just go for it and put ourselves out there. I enjoyed reading your batting story because it was a personal experience, but I could connect with it and put myself in your shoes. I found this to be a nice reminder to not let myself live in fear and self doubt!