Sliding In To Home Plate

I know nothing about baseball, nor will even attempt to make comparisons other than our Rockies have been in the news quite a bit as a wild card.  They will need to do a lot of sliding into home if they aspire to the championship.

You may have heard the expression that is something about life and sliding into home, worn out and used up.  Not to be abusing your body, but I think that is a damn good way to think about your life – in that you lived it to the fullest.  You can go to your grave with the pennant in hand, maybe even singing “We will, we will rock you!!”  (Shake it, Freddie!)

I talked to some friends the other day who are experiencing serious health issues.  They never thought life would come to oxygen and artificial limbs.  (Love you, P & T!)  I reminded my friend to think of how well they lived their life.  She agreed and she said they had a lifetime of fun.  In the 10+ years I’ve known them, I’ve had an enormous amount of fun with them and I almost think in those 10 years more fun than in the rest of my life altogether.  That’s kind of sad.  However, it was one of those moments that you view your life through someone else’s eyes.

She has poor health, but lived life to the fullest.  I have good health, but much of my life had small moments of happiness.  Who has it better?

Difficult to ponder, even as I write that.

I guess maybe it comes back to baseball.  I’m going to take a metaphorical swing at that, so forgive my sports ignorance.

Life is a game.  You step up to bat and you really never know if you’re going to score big or strike three and you are out.  Then what?  You could whack yourself in the head with the bat and take yourself out of the game forever.  You could spend some time in the outfield, catching balls that someone else drives to you, and occasionally send them back to the bench.  You could take time to study the game, better yourself, work yourself free of some bad habits and step back up to the plate.  This game is too much fun to give up on, and you are game enough to do it better.

So step up to the plate, extend that first finger to the outfield, swing that bat like you want to win the championship, and slide into home plate with everything you’ve got, because you are the champion of your life.