Baseball, Hot dogs, Apple Pie & Chevrolet

Baseball 2017 is definitely one that will go down in my history book. I knew I was going into this with coaches that were more experienced, had bigger mouths & bigger attitudes then I even had.. I started out so excited to coach.. I knew I could love the kids... I knew, I knew a little about baseball and I just knew I could hold my own in a world that is definitely dominated by Men..

But what I didn't anticipate was the humble anxiety of, "What the HELL did I just get myself into" feeling. The anxiety I felt before every game was atrocious.. the desire to want to live up to the expectation the parents had for their kids and for me as their sons coach was heart pumping..

All the boys were great. They all came with different personalities, different back grounds, different talent but there was one boy who really made me feel like I was doing a good job.

I will never forget this kid. He was a travel ball player so he had some experience under his belt that some of the other kids didn't have, but he never let that "I'm better than you" attitude show. He was humble, kind, so respectful (and all the kids were). But what was unique about this kid was his willingness to talk to me. He had a natural ability to build kids up. He would say, "Coach, put this kid in to pitch, He can really throw." And this young man was my pitcher. He would say, "Coach, let this kid try, I know he can do it." It was constantly like this...

I had the kids in a circle one time and we were talking.. I was very insecure about being the only female coach in the Minors league & I asked the boys if they had wished they had a boy coach in some respect... some shouted, YES, some just sat there because they knew it was a loaded question & this young man thought about it & he said, No- it's been fun having a FeMale coach. I giggled because I knew THEY were all out of their element as much as I was.

I learned a lot this season. I learned that I don't want to be that FEMale that is all powerful. There is a place for Women in the world and for me it is not on the Baseball Field. My husband supported me like a champ. Every game the umpire would approach him and ask him if he was the Coach.. and He would look dazed & say, Uh NO! I loved coaching with him, he was my ROCK on the Field...

I enjoy coaching & I enjoy coaching the little boys when they were younger. But as boys get older, I recognize, they need their dad or a Male figure to coach them the rest of the way.

I learned that little kids have voices & that maybe sometimes we should listen more than we do.
I learned that I'm still pretty competitive and that is why I may go back to bowling :)

But I want to Thank this Young Man. He has great parents who try everyday like you & I. I hope he always stays true to himself & I hope that he always follows his dreams and continues to always speak up for what He believes in. Because He really advocated for his Team Mates & I respected him for that. He truly magnified Maximizing YOU Everyday..

Now Let's play ball...