Conclusion

At first I created this blog just because I wanted to get a good grade in writers workshop. Yes I thought it would be fun to write a blog that has to do with softball and life lessons but I didn't really think that I would get anything out of it. I thought ,"Oh this will be a fun experiment but i can't wait for it to be over!" Boy do I feel stupid now that I said that. I'm sad that my project is over and I have gotten a lot out of it.

I'm hoping this project was able to help other people deal with hard situations. I know that it certainly helped me to write it out. When Tom died I was so sad and thought I was going to have to pretend to be happy in this blog. While writing it, however, i realized many things about his death that made me happy; I didn't have to pretend. Of course I wasn't happy that he died but I learned that it wasn't mine or anyone's fault and he would want us to continue living our lives.

I don't think I will blog anymore, but this has certainly convinced me to continue writing. I know that I'm going to write in my journal a lot more. Being able to write out my feelings has allowed me to let out things that I have been too afraid to express out loud. I hope my blog has helped someone realize that everyone has rough patches in their life but they can get through them. Well, now its time to say goodbye.

Goodbye!

Dropping a Fly Ball

One of the most embarrassing things that can happen to an outfielder is dropping a fly ball. Every time a batter hits a ball to the outfield the outfielder is terrified that they will drop the ball. Ive had that happen to me before and it was terrible. I was embarrassed because everyone was staring at me, guilty because I let me team down, and scared that if the ball was hit to me that I would drop it again. All I wanted to do was go back into the dug out and never step back on the field.

Everyone has something happen to them that makes them embarrassed or ashamed. For some its going out and partying and getting caught, or for others it's something as simple as lying to their parents about a test. No matter what you do or how severe it is the shame is still there and you want to go back into the dug out and hide.

In softball you have to learn that everyone makes mistakes. You can't sit there feeling sorry for yourself and crying because you made a mistake. You have to suck it up and go back out on the field and help your team because that's your job. It's the same with every day life. Yes, it sucks when you make a mistake and have to bear the guilt as a result. You can't, however, just feelsorry for yourself. Your time will be much better spent learning from your mistakes and moving on. In softball when I make a mistake on the field I know that I can redeem myself when I go up to bat.

I can't wait to show my team what I'm made of and hit a home run.

Random Post about Claire

Ok I'm going to apologize in advance for this random post that has nothing to do with softball. However, I couldn't contain myself from posting about Claire Tunakan!!!

We hardley knew each other at the beginning of this year. That all changed when we both joined second block writers workshop. We sat next to each other and we couldn't stop talking. You can ask our teach Mrs. Flurry for some confirmation on that statement. She can make me laugh no matter what and shes freakin gorgeous!

Claire and I became really close this past week when our friend Tom died. I talked about him in my second post. We decided to go to Tom's funeral together because we didn't want to mourn alone. Boy am I glad that I went with her! When I began to cry Clair hugged me and was with me the entire time. She knew exactly what to say to make me feel better. After the funeral when she was driving me home she began cracking jokes to cheer me up! She was the only person who could've made me laugh during that really hard time.

I have NO IDEA what I'm going to do without her next semester. Sadly writers workshop is only a semester class so I won't get to see her at all next semester. We will probably hang out anyway, but I will still miss not getting to see her smiling face every day (except weekends and wednesdays). We are sitting next to each other right now and singing Niki Manaj's rap in the song Bottoms Up. Wow this is never a boring class with Claire! We are also going to see Breaking Dawn together tonight, and I'm so excited! We probably will end up not watching any of the actual movie because we'll be talking the entire time, but I really don't care! I'm just excited to get to spend my entire afternoon with the one and only Claire Tunakan.

I really wish all of you could meet Claire. She's that one person that will ALWAYS be honest with you no matter what; and when I say honest I mean brutally honest! See but that's the beauty of Claire, she doesn't care what anyone thinks about her. I admire her so much because she is who she is and doesn't change herself for anyone. I love her to death and I don't know where I would be without her :)

You Won't Always Start the Game

   One lesson that I've had to learn the hard way is that I won't always get what I want. When I was younger I was the starting pitcher for my softball team and i loved it. I was the main pitcher and I had never known the feeling of not getting to start a game. This all changed this year when I hurt my knee and I was out for four months. It was torture to have to watch my team play and sit the bench the whole game. I just wanted to jump out on the field and help my team win the game. I hated not being able to pitch or bat.

   After I was allowed to play softball I began to pitch again. I worked very hard for about two months and then pitched in front of my team. Before I was injured I was as good as the other pitcher on my team and we took turns starting the game. After my injury, however, when I pitched in front of my team I realized how far behind I now was. Instead of pitching the same speed as the other pitcher, I was much slower and had lost my accuracy. I was crushed because I knew that I wasnt going to be starting the game that weekend. I thought that surely I would stil pitch, but I was proven wrong.

   That weekend we had a three day tournament, and guess what? I didn't pitch; not a single game. I went home and cried because I thought it wasn't fair. I had worked so hard and my coach hadn't let me pitch. Then I realized that it's not always about what I want. It's about what's best for the team and what's best for me. I was being selfish and thinking only of myself and what I wanted. Softball has taught me that I won't always get what I want. I need to trust my coach and know that he always has my best interests in mind.

He just wants me to do my best and hit a home run.

Hitting a Change Up

   One of the hardest things to do is to hit a change up. A change up is an off speed pitch that many pitchers throw to get the batter's timing off. Change ups are usually very unexpected and cause the batter a lot of stress. Many of us have change ups in our life. We have something happen to us that is very unexpected and causes a lot of stress in our life. My change up was my friend killling himself. He seemed so happy and like life was going great for him; so obviously I was in complete shock when I found out that he had taken his life.

   At first change ups seem like unbeatable obstacles. When a batter sees a change up coming they think, "Im not going to hit this. There's no way I can get a home run." The same thought passes through our minds when we learn of a sudden death. We believe that we are never going to be happy again; that we will never feel true joy for the rest of our life.

   Hearing that Tom had taken his own life put me in a state of shock. I felt as if I was in a dream and I prayed every day that I would wake up. The change up had been thrown and I was terrified. People kept telling me that everything was going to be ok, but I didn't believe them. I truely believed that I would be in this dark abyss for the rest of my life. To others that have lost someone to suicide, I feel your pain. So many thoughts rush through your head. Was there something you could've said? Why didn't you tell him/her how much they meant to you? Did they really think they mattered that little to the world? You feel as if you will never be able to hit the change up for a home run.

   Im going to tell you right now that you can hit the change up. It takes a lot of patience and prayer but it can happen. When someone you know and love kills themself you can't blame yourself for their choice. I know it feels like it's your fault, but it's not. You can't spend yourslef wondering why they did what they did. You have to trust in God and know that you will see them again someday. Something good can come out of a tragic situation. One thing you can do is to use your experience to help others going through what you're going through. You can also be there for the family of the loved on you've lost. No matter what you do, you can't stop living your life. Wouldn't your loved one be upset if you stop living because of their choice?

You have to wait for the change up, and hit your home run.
 

Introduction

One of my all time favorite things to do is to play or practice softball. It is the one and only sport that I play. I am a pitcher and I also play first base. I have played softball since fifth grade and I devote my life to it. I play it all year round and some people think I'm obsessed but I really don't care. I spend more time playing softball than hanging with friends or doing homework. Softball is what I love to do and I wouldn't have it any other way.

I decided to make this blog so I could help people to learn lessons in a different way. I'm going to compare life lessons to the amazing game of softball. The title of my blog is a play on words. I'm sure if you think hard enough you can figure out which words I switched out to make the title make sense.

I also made this blog because I know many people don't think that softball is important or interesting. Well I am here to tell you that those people are wrong. Softball has been my release from the world when I feel like nothing is going right. I know I can go to the batting cages and hit the balls as hard as I can when I'm frustrated or upset. I hope my blog will give people a new perpesctive on simple life lessons.

Life's a pitch, and we all just have to wait for our home run.