Don’t you LOVE that moment when something in your LIFE just clicks? It’s like the sweet relief that comes after fumbling with your seat belt or struggling to unlock a door – times a thousand. I watched it happen over the weekend – and learned so much in the process.
On Friday night, Ryder’s baseball team – coached by Brad – played their last game of the season. It had been a rough year, sports fans. No matter how many practices they had, the boys just couldn’t get it together. In the stands at “Optimists Field,” we parents kept hope alive…but got used to witnessing dropped balls, strike outs and overthrows as Brad tried to {loudly} pump the boys up on the sidelines. Despite their shortcomings, the team didn’t give up; they kept playing, they kept smiling, and they kept rejoicing in the free slushies after each game.
Ryder's catcher, Brad's the coach & Tru is chief cheerleader!
They had no chance of making the playoffs, so we knew Friday night was the Green Machine’s last game. Had this group of eight- and nine-year-olds seemed lazy and unmotivated, we all would have understood. But they were the opposite. Those boys took the field and something clicked. As they caught pop flies, made glorious outs at first base and got hit after hit, all of us in the stands were equal parts stunned and overjoyed, squealing in disbelief! It was so fun to see the kids’ broad grins and wide eyes as everything they’d worked on all season long finally came together. The Green Machine won their very last game, 18-1.
What those kids accomplished was not by chance. A moment of glory like that doesn’t happen for quitters; it happens for people who persevere, who stay motivated, and keep the faith. Something clicks when you’ve been trying like crazy to make something work – and it finally does.
*****
Yesterday, I spent a LOT of time writing specifically about how these boys and their coaches inspired me on Friday – and throughout the season. How they never gave up. How they met small goals time and time again. How they didn’t let their low points overshadow their highlights.
And then I walked away from the computer. When I came back, 3/4 of my post was gone. I have no clue what happened. I frantically tried everything I could think of to get it back, with no luck.
{insert primal scream here}
My first thought? Chuck the whole damn post. I was tired. I was frustrated. I was – I suddenly realized – being tested. Something clicked. Here I had just written all about the Green Machine persevering through challenges and keeping the faith – and how I felt inspired to do the same. It was almost comical that I now needed to address a new challenge…stemming from that post. I couldn’t give up, right?
Thinking of those kids and their resilience gave me the motivation I needed to sit my butt back down and type this out. Finish what I started. I’ve had plenty of instances in my life when a goal felt too out of reach or a challenge felt too overwhelming to move forward. You, too? This was an immediate opportunity – a nudge from the universe – to take what I learned from the Green Machine kids and apply it to my own life.
I will not let a curve ball knock me down.
I will not let my missteps keep me from trying again.
I will find joy in each challenge – and look forward to the giant slushie at the end!
