Take Me Out . . .
One of our summer habits when the weather or mosquitos
keep us indoors, is to turn the radio on and tune it to the Milwaukee Brewer
baseball game. We listen in while we
relax in the evening with a good book, or a puzzle, or a cribbage game. Yesterday, we had an open calendar, the team
was in town, and we had extra motivation of a long-overdue visit of my oldest
brother and his wife who live just south of Milwaukee. So, we headed down to catch the game in
person. Baseball, touted by previous
generations anyway, as “America’s Game, still has its teachable moments.
We don’t get to many games, I suppose mostly because I
really do not like the traffic of the big city.
So, when Michelle ordered the tickets online, she was just looking for
something close to the action that wasn’t going to force us to rejoin the
workforce to pay for them. So, we
secured tickets very close to the third base dugout. Turns out that is the visiting team’s
dugout. Although, when we were walking
into the stadium from the parking lot we seemed to be in a sea of Brewer fans, when
we found our seats there was a noticeable number of New York Mets fans all
around our section. Lesson one, cheer
for your team without needing to say anything derogative about the other
team. The Mets fan seated directly in
front of me did not follow this lesson well, and the additional alcohol
consumption did not help. So, we got to
experience the wisdom of lesson one firsthand.
Lesson two, remember that I am a deacon and do my best to ignore said
fan rather than feel any need to engage him.
The Brewers honored the 50th anniversary of
the final home run hit by Hank Aaron.
They had some vintage video footage on the big screen and nice
narrative. His widow was in the
park. She smiled widely at the volume of
the round of applause received. Lesson
three, remember your past and those who have gone before. You will always be better off for their memory.
They have expanded the ritual of throwing out the
first ball. Four different people, all
representing various admirable causes each took a turn. There were two cancer survivors, a head of a
local charity that works with youth, and a young man of about twelve who
participates in their program. They also
announced the “Hero of the Game” who was a military veteran. All of them received a standing ovation. Lesson four, it is a good thing to recognize
the accomplishments of others and to encourage them.
Freddie Peralta, the player pitching for the Mets, was
back in Milwaukee for the first time since he was traded in the offseason. He received a standing ovation when he took
the mound. The camera zoomed in on his
face that morphed from sternly focused, to surprise, to a wide smile of
appreciation. Lesson five, don’t let the
seriousness and competitiveness of sports interfere with showing your appreciation
to another.
The old song celebrates that eating at the ball park
is part of the experience. It still is,
but it comes at a cost significantly higher than the days of yesteryear. Lesson six, enjoy your picnic at the park
with appreciation rather than grumbling, and remember to bring your credit
card.
There are two required songs for anyone attending a
game. The first is the Star-Spangled
Banner sung before the game, the second is Take Me Out to the Ballgame, which
is sung during the 7th inning stretch. In this respect, consider the stadium is like
church. Lesson seven, don’t just be a
spectator; sing along even if you can’t sing well, and savor the words of both
songs. It is your opportunity to become
part of the experience.
This turned out to be the perfect game for me. Although the Brewers just finished a hard-fought
series with the Florida Marlins where the games came down to the final pitch,
or run, in this one the Brewers were comfortably ahead for the entire
contest. Lesson eight, don’t obnoxiously
rub it into the fans of the opposing team because your team won. No single game decides anything which is why
they play 162 of them during the season.
And, the accomplishment of others is something you can share in and be
happy about, but it doesn’t add to your personal importance. So, Michelle and I applauded and cheered, but
not excessively. We aimed our cheers at
the field and not at any Mets fans.
We paid for the Premium parking lot which got us close
to the stadium. That allowed us quick
entry after a short walk. However, we
were literally surrounded by vehicles after the game and had to wait close to
half an hour before it even paid to start the car. We used the time engaged in good conversation. Lesson nine, a final reminder for the evening
that patience is still a virtue.
His Peace <><
Deacon Dan
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