Saturday was Senior Day at the Campbell University softball field where 7 senior softball players were going to be honored along with their parents before the first game of a double header. I have been to three of these before this one… so what made this one different? My daughter was going to be one of the seniors honored on the field that day… where did the time go?
The year was 1989 and my wife gave birth to a baby girl eight years after we had our first child, our son, eight years earlier. We didn’t know what to expect when she was born… what would she be like? what would she become? what kind of person would she grow up to be? But here we were in 2011 on a damp and cold April day looking out over a softball field knowing the answers to most of those questions.
When my daughter was 5 she asked Santa to bring her a lot of presents at Christmas. What did she want? A basketball, a baseball and glove, a golf set, a soccer ball, and a badminton set. I went to the local sporting goods store to buy all of the above items only to have the following dialogue with the cashier…
“Buying Christmas presents?”
Me: “Yes”
“Your son is going to really like all this stuff.”
Me: “Yes, SHE sure is.”
And so here we are many years later to today, April 9, 2011, to watch her for one of the last times playing her favorite sport softball… Along with six of her classmates all sharing a similar fate. It was a joyous occasion… it was a sad occasion… there was laughter, there were tears… There was on the day a finality of it all… a sport these ladies loved to play was coming to a close. There would soon be no more softball for them after playing it for the last 15 years for many of them. For us parents it was the same… we had watched them play for 15 years, had watched them grow, develop, and mature in their beloved sport. We had made many friends in this softball world and it too was ending for us… What will they do next year during softball season?
What will we do…?
you will make new memories!..what great ones you have to cherish!!
ReplyDeleteWonderful accomplishment. How sad that she won't continue her sport. Is there nothing in between where she is now and full-time involvement.
ReplyDeleteA lovely day for you, as proud parents.
Blessings
What a mix of emotions you had to be going through. Our girls also played softball. We know how hard she has worked. That experience for her will never be able to be replaced. She is a beautiful young lady. You SHOULD be so proud of her. Pass along our CONGRATULATIONS!
ReplyDeleteHope your beautiful daughter scores a home run moving on in her adult life! :)
ReplyDeleteCongrats to you and her. You must be very proud.. :)
ReplyDeleteHeyduke, Congrats on getting your daughter launched in such a wonderful way. She is obviously a keeper! Take care...
ReplyDeleteI can certainly tell that you love your daughter and support her involvement with athletics. I really appreciate the fact that support women's sports in general. I was in high school when Title IX became law so I finally had a chance to play on a team. I know the experience helped me throughout my life much as it will your daughter and all of the others who have played sports. Again, thank you.
ReplyDeleteSyl
Sure know how you feel. We were doing the same with our son just over a year ago.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to your daughter, I am sure you are very proud of her.
Kevin and Ruth
www.travelwithkevinandruth.com
Softball won't be over for your daughter. My daughter played softball into her 40s and loved it as much as she did when she was much younger. She will find a lot of teams wanting a player of her caliber.
ReplyDeleteShe played on a coed team with her brother who is 13 years younger than her and they had a blast. It helped that both of them could hit the long ball and have great arms. It was a real bonding time for them.
And there's always coaching - down the road - that's what our daughter is doing (although she's involved in field hockey instead of softball). Congratulations to your daughter and I'd say congrats to her parents, too, for a job well done!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous storyline, gorgeous pictures, and gorgeous girls [mom & daughter]... with her loving parents and their unwavering support, she'll swing into her future 'batting a thousand'!
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