One of the greatest gifts a father can give his son is his time. One of the greatest gifts a son can give his father is the appreciation of that time. I am a lucky man.
Over the next couple weeks we’re planning the summer baseball schedule. He’s eighteen now and it’s that last summer before he goes off to start college. He has worked hard in the classroom and on the field and will be fortunate enough to continue playing. As we looked at the schedule he looked at me and said, “Dad, you know what’s missing? We don’t have any true road trips. The out of town tournaments are far enough away that we have to fly.” A trip to Arizona is planned, as is a trip to New Jersey. If everything works out there might be a trip to Farmington too.
Over the years folks have asked me about what I thought the benefits of select or travel baseball are. I could give them the usual answers of quality coaching and competition. These are true benefits but what has really stuck with me over the past few years is the time that I was able to spend with my son. I’ve been fortunate in that I have been able to make every local tournament and every out of town tournament over the years. We might have a three-hour or a six-hour or even a twelve-hour trip to and from the tournament that he’s playing in. There might be two week travel in a row. But if we weren’t together traveling and playing ball during this time we would have been pursuing other interests. Those interests would have probably diverged somewhere along the way.
What I’ve learned over the years is that it’s the journey that’s important. The destination is seen in the minds eye but it’s the journey has turned out to be the most important and enjoyable part. T-Ball, Mustang, Pony, High School, Travel/Select, and now on to the next level – they’re all part of the journey. Well we have one more journey to make before the fall.
We’ve decided to drive a two thousand mile round trip to Phoenix and back. One more road trip is slated. We’re going to take a few days to get there and more than a few days to get back. We’re going to stop anywhere we want – Tombstone, the Grand Canyon. We’ll watch the sunset over the Davis Mountains. We’re going to stop in Winslow to see if “a girl in a flat bed Ford slows down to take a look at me.” We’ll marvel at the badlands of New Mexico. Wonder as the Rockies break the plains. We plan on living on pazole and tripas tacos for a week or two. If we find the worlds largest rubber band ball or the worlds largest stuffed jackalope we’re going to stop and look at it. I short we’re going to focus on the journey, not the destination.
My son and I are at a pivotal point and we both realize it. He’s no longer a boy; he’s becoming a man. We’re going to take this last summer to relive old times, enjoy and reflect on the journey, and get to know each other as men. Like I said earlier, I am a lucky man.
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