I have developed a love affair with baseball. About four years ago I began watching baseball with my then roommate.  She was and still is an avid Blue Jays fan.  Every night we would watch the games together in the summer and I learned about baseball from her.  I got to know the players and who was good and well liked by the fans.  I also got to know the other teams and how competitive this game really is.

After a while I began to form my own opinions and favourites based on personality and performance. I became a Blue Jays fan myself and am still, to this day, loyal to my team.  Growing up in Toronto it only made sense.

When I moved out on my own two years later I missed my baseball time and began watching it on my own.   There was something about the game that drew me in.  I like it because it is slow and strategic and there is no fighting among the teams, at least hardly ever.  

The more I watched the game the more I see how the strategies get played out and how players get to know how to respond to the pitches and work together to score runs or defend against them.  I now have so much respect for both the offensive side and the defensive side of the game though I am just a junior when it comes to my knowledge of either side.

Metaphor for Life

Baseball, in my mind, is a good metaphor for life.  When we come up to bat we are at home plate and sometimes we hit a home run and sometimes we strike out.  Either way where we start is called home.  When we hit the homer we make our way around the bases as fast as we can until we are back home again.  When we strike out we leave home and go back to the dugout to contemplate our last move and how we could have done better until it is time to go home again.   

Other times we hit the ball just hard enough to make it to first base or if we are lucky to second or third on the first hit.  Then we wait for someone else to come to bat and hit us home.  Isn’t that a lot like life?  We all start from some place called home and then we make our way back independently running as fast as we can or strolling around the bases with a little help from our family and friends.  Sometimes we are left on the base and don’t make it back right away so we have to start over.

I have had my fair share of home runs in my life starting new projects and then working as hard as I can to bring the project home.  Just like in baseball where the playing fields change, we move around and we have to get used to the new terrain.  Some people work the same job and for the same company their whole career.  I know people who retired after 40 years from the same company and lived in the same house which they bought and paid for with the wages they earned.  Retirement for them was going home and not coming back to work.

For me though, I did similar work for lots of different organizations.  I always started at home office or home plate and worked my way around the organization helping them set up systems and clear administrative structures that worked to keep the ball in play.  When the game was completed I moved on.  I never stayed with one team for long.   

I moved around a lot in my life.  I had several different homes that suited my needs at the time.  I learned to play different positions and how to be a good leader as well as team player.  I could pick up the slack at new positions and learned to see the field from different perspectives.

Sometimes, though, life throws you a curve ball and you either hit it and make it to the next base or you miss it and have to try again.  

Building Community and Team Spirit

I was once offered an incredible opportunity to work on a pilot project helping young adults make the transition from school life to community living.  These young people had various forms of intellectual challenges and needed special accommodations to be able to work or volunteer in the community.  What made this project so special was that it was based on individualized funding and specialized programming so that I could go out into the community and find places for them to be of service based on their individual interests and dreams.  I had ten clients who I worked with and at the end of the first year they were all working or volunteering in a community organization where they felt they belonged and where their gifts and talents were honoured and appreciated.  They were all happy.  

After having such success with the first group I looked forward to the next year and another group of young people coming through the program.  Sadly though, the provincial government did not see the need for such a program to continue and decided to incorporate the work we did into a more generic program which was cheaper and where everyone was lumped together into workshops and government funded group activities.  I was offered a new contract at $15,000 less than my original contract to work with the same people while I watched their dreams being squashed before my eyes.  I said no and went back to the dugout to find my way back to home plate. Before I left though the young adults and their families had a farewell party for me and told me how much they appreciate the work we did together.  They knew I respected them and they in turn respected me.  For me that was my own personal home run.  

Team Building and Commitment

Having worked for many different organizations in different capacities all to do with office administration, human resources and sometimes social networking or community development, I have learned the benefits of working independently as well as in a team environment.

Now that I am retired I spend my time in the stands observing and watching the games being played from a spectators perspective. My role in the game of life is to cheer on those who are still running the bases, managing the teams and keeping the games going.  

I watch and support my children raise their children and support their spouses.  I spend time with my friends and peers making our way through life supporting organizations that we believe in.  

When and where possible we are out on the front lines advocating for a better world for our grandchildren and all children to grow up in.  We volunteer in and support community organizations that we believe in.  We may be in the bleachers still we are participating in the game because without the spectators there is no game.  

So dear readers whether you see the metaphor the way I do or whether you even like or know anything about baseball may you know that what ever position you play or however your participate you are part of the team we call the human race and your role is important.  

Let’s Play Ball!