LIFE LESSON NUMBER ONE

My two grandchildren who live in Spokane, WA, have been staying with us for the past two weeks as part of their summer vacation. They are 11 and 14, which are fun ages, and just to prove it… we have already been to Wild Rivers, Laser Tag, Disneyland, and of course “In-And-Out” Burger multiple times. My wallet might be empty, but my stomach sure is full! 

We’ve had a lot of fun and we’ve talked a ton, and I have to say that I’ve learned a few things from both of them. For example I now know more about Taylor Swift than I ever thought possible, and I learned that the wrong type of mouse when you are gaming can make you less than swift. But as I learned things from them, I also pondered what can I teach them in return? What one important life lesson could I share with them that might help them the most as they grow into adults and get hit by raging real world reality?

Yesterday, my grandson and I were talking about baseball, and he asked to see my MSBL World Series Ring. I said, “Sure”, happy to show off that big shiny ring and regale him with stories about the thrill of victory. However, I had to think about where it was. I hadn’t taken it out or looked at it for years, but when I finally found it in the bottom of my sock drawer, it gave me an idea for a truly important life lesson.

I had already shared with my grandson the story of my own personal baseball journey. How I sucked at it for 10 straight years until one day, when I made three errors and struck out three times in a row and said to myself… that’s the last time I’m gonna fail! I hired myself a coach, took a thousand ground balls, and hit baseballs until my hands bled, and eventually got good enough to be asked to join a select team of ballplayers headed to the MSBL World Series in Phoenix.

That’s a good life lesson in itself, that practice and hard work can lead to success. But that’s not the important lesson. The real lesson, the most important lesson that I learned from playing baseball, had to do with relationships, not RBI’s. I made friends on my baseball team who will be my friends for life. They picked me up when I was down, and I did the same for them. Many times we went home bleeding, but smiling, sharing a love for the game, and a love for each other. To this day, if any one of my baseball buddies called me and needed my help, I would be there for them faster than a four-seamer down the middle. To this day we still stay in touch, we still love baseball, and we still love each other. Rings can rust and trophies can get trashed, but a true friend is better than a “Double-Double with Animal Fries” any day!

Remember two things, play hard and have fun!

~ Tony Gwynn, Hall of Fame Baseball Player