There’s something special about baseball season. 
It’s the season that serves up “peanuts and Cracker Jacks.”
There’s the snap, crackle and pop of Friday night fireworks on hot summer nights when the stadium seats stick to your legs.
There’s the camaraderie of the crowd.
And of course there’s the thrill of “root, root, rooting for the home team.”
Our Tulsa Drillers will hit the field for their 2012 season opener tonight, and loyal fans will fill the stands for the first game for our boys of summer.
Watching America’s favorite pastime is one of my favorite pastimes. It’s safe to say that you’ll find me in the stands supporting our Tulsa Drillers often. I love baseball season and the simple experience of leaving behind the worries of the world, at least for a few hours, to focus on being a fan. I love sitting in the stands and sweating out the score. I love how the draw of the field breathes life into downtown Tulsa.
I also love the parallel that baseball has to our everyday lives. Like the players we cheer for at ONEOK field, each day we must root for our own team. Each day we’re the star player of our own roster and we all get up to bat. Some days we hit home runs, other days there are errors and then sometimes we strike out. We have championship seasons, and some years are about rebuilding. Regardless, we do not give up, instead we get back up to the plate the next day and the day after that. We celebrate success and we face fleeting failure. Hope awaits at our next at-bat.
Baseball player Babe Ruth (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I remember learning about Babe Ruth as a school kid. He was famous for his home run record. While Babe Ruth hit 714 home runs. He also struck out 1330 times.
Don’t worry about failure. Worry about the chances you miss when you don’t even try.
Good luck tonight and this season Tulsa Drillers!
Knock it out of the park, everyone…and keep swinging for the stars!
Shine on!!
TheSunshineStand 
Julie, Dad says to remind you that you had a newspaper photo of Babe Ruth taped to the wall in your room. It said under Babe’s picture, “What does it take to be great.”. Seeing that told Dad that you understood that being average was not an option and that you wanted to excel.