Throughout my high school career, I was a proud member of the 'I'm-too-artistic-to-bow-to-the-pressure-to-be-popular' crowd. I had a good group of friends who kept me busy, and it didn't really bother me that I wasn't considered popular. I was in chorus and band, all the drama club shows, on student council and yearbook staff. I was an artistic type, and I was proud of the fact that I didn't understand what a suicide squeeze is or how a knuckleball varies from more traditional pitching styles. This was simply not information I needed, nor was it anything I was interested to know. I was creative, I was above these plebeian games.
        Then I got married.
        My husband and I have very similar personalities, but those personalities show themselves in quite different hobbies. He loves every sport, all of them, but especially baseball. In high school, he was a prototypical jock who lived for the spring weather that meant baseball was on its way. We dated in high school (fortunately, we did not go to the same school), and I went to see one game. He can still tell you all of his stats for that game. All I can tell you is that it rained.
        Fast forward to 2015 when we have been married for several years. I can now explain what a 6-4-3 double play is, how to properly field a ground ball, and call a balk indignantly from the stands with a pretty good grasp on whether it actually was a balk or not. My husband was hired six years ago as the assistant coach of the junior high team at the school where I teach. This year, he has made the move to head coach of the varsity team. I'm so very proud of him and the young men he's been working with. If you do the math, these would be the first boys he coached at junior high, so it's pretty poetic that his first year as a varsity coach is with this special group.
        So why bother to spend a whole blog post talking about baseball?
        Reason #1 is because I enjoy it. No joke, I am writing this as a fan of baseball. I enjoy the strategy of the game (even if I don't completely understand it all the time), the atmosphere of the stadium, the skill of the players. Now, part of that may be brought on by the fact that I live in the meteorological armpit of America this year, and baseball normally means that the warm weather will be coming. My need for sunshine aside, the sport is enjoyable to watch for me.
        Reason #2 is that baseball season always reminds me that the world is so  much more vast than my slim experience. Too often, we choose to stay who we are, doing what we do, knowing what we know. It is a challenge to step outside of our own comfort zone. When I married my husband, I married into a whole world of things that I didn't know about (and he likewise, believe me. Maybe someday I'll dedicate a blog to his wonderful work training our Labrador to be Toto when I directed The Wizard of Oz - true story). If I had chosen to stay within my own world of artsy people and things, I would have missed out on some great experiences.
        I'm looking forward to this baseball season. This year, the team has a great group of young men who are talented, hard-working, and, to be honest, just all around good people. Little Man loves going to practice, and I'm happy that he's able to play catch and watch warm-ups with players who care about him and are excited to include him. I hope that we'll be watching a lot of games this year as our Meteors go deep into the playoffs.
        Yes, I write. I studied music at college, and I am currently the director of a great drama program at my high school. All of those things are important to me - I am still a big artsy-dork.
        But I am also looking forward to cheering on the jocks, with my husband at the helm, as they try to do their thing.
        Life is short, and there are a lot of incredible experiences to have. I want to look back and say that I enjoyed a full variety of great things. Baseball among them. Go Meteors!
The youngest member of the Meteor baseball family, wearing his own team hat.