Wichita Reds....Already Miss Them!

Baseball season has been done for awhile but this time its different.  Struggling to let go.  You see these boys aren't going to be together anymore.  They all started high school last month.  They will try out for high school baseball and move in different directions. Gratefully our coach has prepared them exactly for that day. Most of the team have been together for 3 years.  We're like family.  I'm closer to some of these parents than some of my family.  It's all a bit heartbreaking.  When you do youth sports at a competitive level where you start practice in December and your season doesn't end until July....well.  These boys are like brothers, I mean they've gone through puberty together. That's huge.

I am so grateful for coaches who have walked along side my son, my fatherless son, and been a positive role model for him.  They have encouraged him, trained him, corrected him when needed, been there for him.  Trust me.  It was still hard to see all the dad's with their sons, each week, walking off together, talking to their son when they were discouraged.  And then God did something amazing. This year he brought a new player.  He also lost his dad at age 7, his mom was also a widow (now remarried) and we instantly had a connection. So cool. Did you all know that?  Thank you, Ben for introducing us.

We could not have asked for a better coach.  I know so many other teams deal with drama on a regular basis.  Constantly.  People upset, teams disbanding, fighting all the time.  We were just blessed with a coach that wouldn't put up with that sort of thing.  Like I said most of us have been together since the team started 3 years ago. You don't often see that.  Ben you have been so great for this team.  Thank you for pouring yourself out there, every single day for these boys.  I know you have loved them as your own.  You are a good man. And he has the cutest kid on the planet.  I just don't know what I will do not seeing that sweet boy every week.  I will have so many uneaten Beef Sticks because Cannon wasn't there.

I will miss being known for having no sense of direction.  If we join a new team, they won't appreciate that about me.  They will just let me get lost.  Coach won't say, "Who's got Reneene?"  Sure I won't end up in Augusta when we go to Garden City, this time, because I know now.  But Ben and I will be wandering around aimlessly in some other town.  And I'll be missing all of you.  Just know that.  Mostly Lori.

Being a stay at home, widowed parent.....I don't get out much.  You baseball parents are my peeps.  I really am going to miss you.  I don't like when seasons change in life.  I know there's facebook.  It's not the same.  There's something really incredible about watching your kids play sports.  Love everything about it.  Youth baseball has been a blast.  Thank you for including us on the journey, we have loved every minute.


And we can't forget the most amazing photographer.  What would we do without Lori?  If you haven't got your video, I'm going to try to post it here.  This will show what you're missing.  Love, love these boys.  Thank you for always being there to capture it all on film.

30 Years, Really?

They say you're a success if you can laugh at yourself.  Ok, I say that, but I think it's a great quality to possess. I am reminding myself of this on this "Throwback Thursday" as I share with you my high school senior picture.  Brace yourself.  Just know, I was a late bloomer.  My own children have had some belly laughs over it.  Even my late husband when seeing it said, "Sorry, I wouldn't have dated you."  Ouch.  As you might imagine, I never had one date in high school.  It's ok.  It didn't help that I ran cross-country, sometimes 10 miles a day and weighed 90 pounds, I literally looked like a poster-child from Ethiopia.  So, here it is.....

Fast forward to my 10 year high school reunion and I secretly vowed to bring the hottest guy as my date, which I did.  I forgot to mention I was made fun of/picked on (see picture) by the boys in my class so I was ready show myself off.  This was silly, I know, but I no longer had a little girl's body and looked like the above picture and I had something to prove.  Even if it was just to myself.  It was a great time, I went with my best friend and her husband.  The most meaningful part of the entire night (anyone who knows me, knows I'm all about meaning) was when a guy I grew up with came up to me and said he wanted to apologize to me.  I was stunned.  He said he was sorry for completely ignoring me in grade school and for making fun of me in high school.  Wow!  How cool was that?  

We didn't have a 20 year reunion, we had a 21 year reunion.  I have always compared my very insecure high school experience to my late husband Jeff's complete opposite high school experience.  Not a good idea.  He grew in Wichita, Kansas his entire life.  He actually went to kindergarten through high school with the same kids.  There's even a picture of like 60 kids that all went through together.  And he was one of the extremely popular kids, where you look at the yearbook and he's on every other page. Really not making this up.  So, could not relate.  Again look at my photo.  There's a point to all this.

I flew to Phoenix for the 21 year reunion, Jeff did not go with me.  He was already battling his brain cancer so I made the quick trip by myself.  It was great to see my cross country friend Linda and our coach Joe Lange.  But I still felt a bit out of place, a little like high school.  Came home and received the DVD in the mail of pictures from the reunion. Lots of pictures from the big event.  I was not in one of them.  Jeff was sitting next to me as we looked at them.  I felt so embarrassed.  He actually asked if I really had gone to the reunion.  Right then I announced that I will never go to another high school reunion. EVER.  I never want to feel that again.  

And here we are.  2014.  It's our 30 year this year.  Guess who is planning the reunion?  That's right, me.  I'm still not quite sure how this has happened when I specifically vowed to never go to another reunion.  What the heck?  I better be in at least one picture.  What I do know is Facebook has entered all our lives and I feel such a connection that wasn't there before.  I have even gotten together with WHS Alumni when I was in Phoenix since starting our FB class page and that would have never happened without Facebook.

I am grateful for a bond I believe many have formed because of Facebook.  We have lost a couple a dear classmates/friends and for many of us who are out of town that was our only way we were able to stay in touch with these friends.  

 Life is precious and fleeting and short.  We really don't know how much time we have.  It will be 7 years in April that my sweet husband passed away, he was way too young.  And his high school class (1983) just in the past 2 months have lost 4 class members unexpectedly.  I really want to encourage all of you 1984 Rams to make an effort to attend the 30 year class reunion.  If I am attending and I said I would never go to another one, certainly you can try to be there.  I would love to sit and visit and chat and laugh and catch-up with whomever shows up.  

Will you show up?  I hope so.