Just One Pitch

"Self confidence is the first requisite to great undertakings."
Dr. Samuel Johnson

I can remember it was a warm summer day in our backyard in Plainville, Connecticut on Burnside Avenue. It was getting late in the afternoon and I was playing with my baseball bat and ball. My brother Paul and I had just got done finishing playing and my father had pulled in the driveway from work.

I yelled over to my Dad as he was about to walk into the house, ‘Dad could you come pitch me the ball?” He hesitated and I asked again, although I sensed he wanted to get in and ready for dinner.

He stepped in the yard and I threw him the tennis ball to pitch to me. “Just one pitch,” he said.

The yard from side to side is no more than 20 yards. I was lined up against the fence to the left and he lined up to pitch the ball with the fence to his back on the right side of the yard.

The pitch came in just perfect and I hit if well over his head, over the fence, into our neighbors yard. I figure I was about seven or eight when that happened so the distance of the hit to me then was like hitting it out of Yankee Stadium.

Just one pitch. My father went in, we all had dinner, and I was the proudest kid in the world at that moment. So proud to show my father how good I can hit.

I look back at my life and that is one of the moments that stick out. The homeruns I hit in little league and high school are vague memories compared to that little hit only he and I saw.

Those are the moments that shape us and those are the moments we help shape others. It’s simple little successes that help gain our confidence and encourage us to keep moving forward. It’s the time we take to help others realize their potential, encourage them, and help them succeed; sometime unknowingly.

We all have the opportunity in our lives to ask for that pitch to be thrown, or to throw that pitch. Happiness and Success in life comes from small meaningful accomplishments that strengthen our self-esteem.

Swing your bat! Pitch the Ball

How is He Today?

“The one who understands does not speak; the one who speaks does not understand”
Chinese Proverb


As I was watching Hurricane Ike spin into and begin to ravage the Houston area and our home in Seabrook from a quaint little restaurant and bar in Destin, Florida I couldn't help think about one of Seabrook's residents.

I don't know him, just seen him over the last 12 years since we've moved to Texas back in 1996. He rides his bicycle around town loaded with bags and stuff. He dresses in a heavy wool coat and wears a heavy hat with flaps that fold over the ears, the type a duck hunter would wear. It could be 95 degrees out and you'll still see him dressed with the winter wear. With a grey beard, weather worn face, I'd say he is about 65 years old.

I didn't know his name until I was talking to my daughter about him last night, mentioning I was wondering how he was doing. She knew his name. Slim. Slim somewhat reminds me of a guy who rode a three wheel bike around my hometown of Plainville, Connecticut. His name was Joe, we called him Joe-Joe. (Hope he is still riding his bike.) He often would turn down our street while we were playing baseball or football on the road and he would talk with us.

Nicest guy in the world Joe-Joe. He couldn't drive as he did some mental retardation that limited what he could do. So, as a kid growing up you understood why he rode his trike.

As for Slim, I don't know his situation. I hear he is married with a child and has plenty of money. I hear he will not talk to anyone.

As I wait for news on how bad we were flooded, I think of Slim. I hope he made it out okay. I hope to say hello to him one day. At least I hope to see him on that bike one day soon.

MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN SOMEONE'S LIFE TODAY

"The purpose of life is not to be happy - but to matter, to be productive, to be useful, to have it make some difference that you have lived at all." ~Leo Rosten









"Make a difference in someone's life today."

If you are around my house on a Saturday morning you will often hear me say that to Sarah, our high school senior, as she leaves the house at 8:30am on the way to gym to teach young girls gymnastics. As I said this yesterday our youngest Rebecca was listening and I turned the conversation to her and we discussed how "it's the little things we can do that can make a difference."

Now that Sarah drives herself to the gym, I miss those 20 minutes there and back having these discussions in more detail and in a captured setting. But I know the thought has sunken in as today, Sunday, she is leaving to go back to the gym, normally she has Sunday off, to run a birthday party for one of her students. Sarah asked me for a few bucks to buy the girl a birthday present saying "this little girl loves me."

How do we make a difference? We make a difference by caring and giving. We make a difference by consciously deciding to leave someone feeling better through our engagement than hoping to take something from it. It doesn't necessarily mean a tangible act, but could just be kind words of encouragement, hope, or love lifting someones feelings, thoughts, and emotions about themselves.

Whether it's with friends, coworkers, family, or strangers we meet at the store, coffee shop, track meet or wherever, what we do and say can "Make a Difference in Someone's Life Today."

PICTURE: Stan and Cynthia Myslenski canoeing down the Farmington River with their kids and grandkids making a difference.