It's Baseball Season!!!

Hello, friends! 

We are now squarely into Spring, which means it's the most wonderful time of the year. Baseball season has begun again!!!

The beginning of the baseball season is the best. Everyone still has a shot and hope springs eternal. With 162 games, the stakes are a little lower game to game. All you need to do is stay close and anything can happen later in the summer. 

It should be well documented that I'm a die hard St. Louis Cardinals fan. Last year was tough, watching our boys go through a really bad season. I kept waiting for us to turn it around but we never did. There were injuries, sloppy play, slumps, and poor front office decisions, which turned our season into a largely forgettable one. Of course, I'm well aware of my baseball privilege. The Cardinals hadn't had a losing season in over 15 years, the second longest active streak up to that point. I'm used to playoff baseball and being in it until the end. Last year was a weird one but I have faith that last season was an anomaly, not the norm, like for some fans. Of course, I hate losing but that's also the great thing about baseball; there are so many games that the sadness doesn't last for too long because there's another game tomorrow. 

A few years ago I wrote about how baseball always has and always will be my first love. Even though I don't watch as much baseball as I used to watch (the kids are more into watching soccer and football), there's still something about sitting down and watching the Cardinals play that really gets me to my happy place. 

Ezra and Thaliea are signed up for baseball again this summer. Jonah is signed up for T-ball too. For Ezra, he'll be in player pitch, so we've been working on his chuck. It's not great but it's coming around. He still has a long way to go but I'm looking forward to continuing to teach him, and the others, about America's past time. 

Go Cardinals! 

~Adam

When your alma mater has a racial incident on campus...

Hello, friends! 

I don't know what's happened to Demitrius or Wingo in the past 17+ years since I graduated from WashU (#GoBears). What I do know is that while I was a student, Wingo would also put a few extra fries on the plate to go with my double cheeseburger (Swiss cheese, in case you were wondering) and that Demitrius would always refer to everyone as "young man" or "young lady" when taking their order. They worked at Bear's Den, the food spot visited by every student who lived on the South 40. They, along with the rest of the mostly Black food workers at Bear's Den were kind, courteous, funny, and really good at their jobs. I never had a super long conversation with any of them (they had to get through the line of students as quickly as they could) but I liked them and seeing them behind the counter at Bear's Den was a constant throughout my 4 years there. 

A few weeks back, there was an incident at Bear's Den. According to those present, eggs and racial slurs were thrown in the direction of Bear's Den employees, allegedly as part of a Greek Pledge Week event. One Fraternity and one Sorority have been suspended while an investigation takes place. 

When I heard about what went down, a few things went through my head. First, I felt sad for my alma mater. Y'all know that I have as much school pride as anyone, so to see WashU in the news for something like this was not ideal. (I also had to question my school loyalty, seeing as how I wasn't even aware of what went down, but that's a different thing). I was brought back to my old stereotypes that I'd believed about Greek life before and during my time in college. (Thankfully, seeing how Greek InterVarsity operates has disabused me of that notion.) 

Mostly though, I thought about Demitrius and Wingo and the rest of the workers I encountered at Bear's Den. They don't deserve to feel unsafe at work. They don't need the added stress of wondering if they are going to be assaulted, verbally or otherwise, while they are trying to serve students. They deserve to be treated with with respect and dignity, just like anyone who is made in God's image. I doubt that Demitrius and Wingo still work at Bear's Den but whoever is there now still deserves better. 

The one thing I haven't figured out yet is whether or not there's anything I need to do beyond just feeling sad from afar. I don't live in St. Louis anymore. I'm not the staff  at WashU or have direct access to students like I did before. I don't think that WashU losing my meager contributions would have a whole lot of impact. It's not that I'm stuck; it's more that there isn't much to do. 

So, I'm going to pray. I'm going to pray from my alma mater. I'm going to pray for the students who allegedly perpetrated these acts. I'm going to pray for the Greek system at WashU, which probably has some things to work out. I'm going to pray for the InterVarsity students at WashU too. I'm going to pray for Demitrius, Wingo, and all the workers at Bear's Den, past and present; that they may know that they are seen and loved by God. 

#GoBears

~Adam    

Soccer season... eventually

Hello, friends! 

It's Spring time, which means that the youth soccer season is upon us! Ezra's team, The Black Widows, is back and I'm back in the saddle as the head coach. 

I'm pretty sure that I've mentioned this before but I have exactly ZERO soccer experience, so coaching has been an adventure. There's an old clip from the Simpsons that always comes to mind at the beginning of the soccer season:

This Spring Season will be a little bit easier because this is our second season in the 3rd/4th grade division. The kids are a little more acclimated to the size of the field and what it takes to play good offense and defense as a team. 

Really, there's only one thing that's keeping us from having a really good season... the weather... 

Winter and Spring have been really weird out here in Omaha. It feels like April and February switched places. During February and the first part of March, the weather was consistently in the 60's and 70's and I was certain that we were going to have a terrible summer. Well, as soon as Soccer season started, February decided that it wanted to make an appearance. 

Our first match was scheduled for March 23rd. Unfortunately, the temps were too cold to play (in the 20's with a wind chill). Our next practice the following Monday had to be cancelled because the field was too wet to play. We didn't have a game scheduled for last Saturday (on account of Easter) but then our practice that was supposed to happen a few days ago got cancelled AGAIN because it rained all day Monday and the field was no good again. 

For the past 2 Mondays, I have been in a bit of a funk, namely because it's my call on whether or not we cancel practice. On the one hand, I want the kids to have fun and they have fun playing soccer. On the other hand, I need to keep the safe. On the other hand, making a late cancellation is a big of a headache for parents who need to change plans. On the OTHER hand though, the parents don't want to be out there in the cold and wet while their kids get good and muddy. I'm pretty sure I've made the right call both weeks but I haven't liked it. 

Soccer season will eventually officially start. We'll play some games and we'll score some goals. We'll give up some goals and everyone will get a snack. Ezra will hopefully enjoy himself and I'll hopefully put the kids in a position to be competitive. Then we'll wait a few months and do it all over again. 

If you live in the Omaha area and want to see some youth soccer, we're playing @ 9:30am at the Maple Street Y for the next 6 weeks. Let me know you're coming and we'd be happy to look for you. 

#GoBlackWidows

~Adam