Stories

I know the picture is kinda blurry but I dont have a scanner

That was the year of 1996, I was in 6th grade and it was my first year of playing softball...That year I made the town's traveling team.Well we were good, so good that we were in the championships for 1st or 2nd place.That night changed the way I look at softball forever

It was a clear summer night in the middle of august.Our team was ahead by one in the first few innings.I was sitting the bench because it was my first year playing and I wasn't that good..yet :P. Well they were slowly catching up to us until they were 2 runs ahead of us.The all of a sudden the center fielder got hurt in the last inning and guess who got put in?me!

We caught up till the score was 6 to 7 them.It was the last inning.One out!Two outs!.Then i was the on deck batter and I remember Lavon,my teammate up to bat was scared about striking out and losing for the team.but she got a hit :D and we all cheered

Then I came up to bat, against the fastest pitcher I ever faced in my little career so far, and it was the first time I was up. This wasn't my second or third time up like most of the girls on my team. "I just got put in and he wants me to hit?" is what I thought.

I Slowly pondered up to the plate with the bat in my hand.I took the signs from Mr.Gelmi(my coach).Of course the sign was swing away what other choice did he have?Well I remember watching the pitcher breathe so hard it looked like she just got kicked in the stomache.And then the pitch.....

"STRIKE ONE!" The umpire said...I couldn't believe it I swung and missed.My next instinct was to kill the ball, I just wanted to rip the cover off the ball."STRIKE TWO!!!!". Again I missed.I stood up there with so many thoughts running through my mind.I didn't want to let my team down.I was so nervous.

Then all I remember on the last pitch was looking at the ball release at her hip and I watched it all the way into the pitchers glove...I thought "That ball is way too far away for me to hit"."STRIKE THREE!!!!!!!!".I had struck out not swinging on the last pitch which my coach always warned us about, and I had lost the championship for my team

The moral of the story, and the lesson I learned is that, that experience was possibly the worst feeling I ever felt knowing that I let my team down.Yet I still picked that bat up the next year, and I still played.So now, No matter what happens I know nothing can be as worse as that night, and if I strike out it's ok, it's not the end of the world