This has been a fun year with baseball. Frankly, I wasn’t convinced at the beginning. We are now in our third season with my son who is in the fourth grade. Like most parents, we struggled through a couple of seasons with strikes and errors. Baseball was never really my sport, preferring basketball and football. Therefore, I couldn’t offer a lot of wisdom and insight into best play practices in baseball and had to depend upon coaches and others. I have grown to really enjoy the sport and especially like to watch my son play.
This year something happened. His play has improved greatly. Very rarely is there a strikeout. Usually it’s a single, double, or triple. Last night it was a double and a walk. Know before I go any further, I want you to understand that I’m proud of my son (simply because he’s my son) regardless of his level of play. The boasting (if you call it that) isn’t for me; it’s for him. He has a confidence and a stride – he’s enjoying himself and the sport. This is a good place to reside; one that’s taken a couple of years.
Here’s the lesson. Chris could have quit after season one. He could have quit after season two. We even had a long discussion about whether he really wanted to play season three; I encouraged, but he chose and I’m so glad that he did. Had he chose to quit, Chris would have finished up his attempt at baseball without reaching the stride that he desired. Through some good coaching and perseverance, Chris is enjoying the game. Had he chose to quit; he would never have experienced this freedom and enjoyment of the sport.
Life is kind of like these past three years. We often give up too easy in adversity. Maybe our performance is less than stellar and so we chose to quit. I think too many people quit too soon on life and miss the opportunity to experience their stride. Success doesn’t happen overnight. Accomplishments don’t often happen with ease. It takes determination, practice, and perseverance. Are you thinking about giving up? Don’t! You might miss your potential if you quit now.
