OLEE OLE OLE OLE OLEEE OLEEE GO REVOLUTION!!!
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Have you ever held an old dirty used baseball in your hand but wanted a brand new white, never been used baseball? Have you ever thought that the ball you had in your hand was too worn and dilapidated to use? Or that you would just rather have a new ball for the sake of having a new ball? I think I have probably wanted the new ball, as I imagine most people do, but then I started thinking about it the way I thought different people would. And even beyond that, I start thinking about the differences in an abstract way.
There are a lot of differences when you first look at a new and a used baseball side by side. The new ball is pure white with crisp blue lettering and logos and tight red stitching. An old ball is tan or even brown, with scuff marks all over it, the lettering and logos on it are smudged and the stitching is frayed. When you hold a new ball you can feel the slightest give in the leather when you squeeze and run your fingers over it. But when you run your fingers over an old ball you feel that the leather is dry and sometimes even cracked. The balls even smell different. The new ball has that new leather jacket, or maybe even new car, smell. The old ball smells like the clothes you have had in your attic for years because one day they might fit you again.
Different peoples opinions will vary on which baseball they would rather have. I think if you were to ask children, they would want the new ball. I imagine that they would rather have the new ball, just for the simple fact that they have an innocence that makes them desire new things, and because a new ball is something that promises new experiences and adventures. If you were to ask a pitcher, though, which ball he would want, he would probably tell you the old one. A pitcher will use the scratches to create more friction on the ball. Sometimes (even though it is against the rules) a pitcher will even try to find ways to scratch a ball on purpose while he has it in his possession. Because of the extra friction, the ball will have more movement as it glides toward the plate and the batter will subsequently have a harder time making solid contact with the ball. Also, if you were to ask fans of major league baseball which ball they would rather have they would, of course, say the dirty game used ball. They would say this because it would mean that they have a ball that was used and handled by players on the team they love or, just, one of the games great players. Im sure there are many other examples one could give but these are the reasons that come to my mind.
Because I love the game of baseball so much and because I have so many memories of being at and watching baseball games, when I think about whether I want a new ball or an old one it gets a little more complicated. I think about what might have happened to the old ball or what will happen to the new ball. I envision who will or has found joy in using or just having them.
When I hold a new ball in my hand I think of possibilities. I think of the fun I will have teaching my daughter how to play the wonderful game of baseball. I wonder if this particular ball will be hit for a home run or just tossed around in the yard. I imagine my daughter laughing as we toss it back and forth. I can almost see her running around the yard chasing after the ball or putting it on the tee so she can hit it. I reminisce about my first, brand new, baseball and all the fun I had with it. I remember just lying on my bed tossing it into the air and thinking about the fun I would have with it the next day. It makes me smile to think of all the possibilities a new baseball holds within it.
In the end though, all new baseballs become old baseballs. Underneath the dirt and scuffs all baseballs hold memories. They hold the memories of children running and laughing underneath the midsummer sun. They hold the memories of parents bringing their children to their first major league baseball game and how the child stares in awe at the ball they catch that was just hit by their hero. There are memories of brothers and sisters doing the one thing that brings them together to spend time with, just, one another. There are the memories of the wooden bats that hurl it through the air and the leather gloves that catch them. There are memories of utter disappointments and monumental accomplishments and then there are the simple memories of a father playing a simple game of catch with his daughter.
When I think about which ball I would rather have, it would have to be the new ball that I have used to teach my daughter with and made into an old ball. I feel this way because to me a baseball or even the game of baseball is more than just the actual tangent thing; it is the memories and the heart and soul that are put into it.
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Have you ever held an old dirty used baseball in your hand but wanted a brand new white, never been used baseball? Have you ever thought that the ball you had in your hand was too worn and dilapidated to use? Or that you would just rather have a new ball for the sake of having a new ball? I think I have probably wanted the new ball, as I imagine most people do, but then I started thinking about it the way I thought different people would. And even beyond that, I start thinking about the differences in an abstract way.
There are a lot of differences when you first look at a new and a used baseball side by side. The new ball is pure white with crisp blue lettering and logos and tight red stitching. An old ball is tan or even brown, with scuff marks all over it, the lettering and logos on it are smudged and the stitching is frayed. When you hold a new ball you can feel the slightest give in the leather when you squeeze and run your fingers over it. But when you run your fingers over an old ball you feel that the leather is dry and sometimes even cracked. The balls even smell different. The new ball has that new leather jacket, or maybe even new car, smell. The old ball smells like the clothes you have had in your attic for years because one day they might fit you again.
Different peoples opinions will vary on which baseball they would rather have. I think if you were to ask children, they would want the new ball. I imagine that they would rather have the new ball, just for the simple fact that they have an innocence that makes them desire new things, and because a new ball is something that promises new experiences and adventures. If you were to ask a pitcher, though, which ball he would want, he would probably tell you the old one. A pitcher will use the scratches to create more friction on the ball. Sometimes (even though it is against the rules) a pitcher will even try to find ways to scratch a ball on purpose while he has it in his possession. Because of the extra friction, the ball will have more movement as it glides toward the plate and the batter will subsequently have a harder time making solid contact with the ball. Also, if you were to ask fans of major league baseball which ball they would rather have they would, of course, say the dirty game used ball. They would say this because it would mean that they have a ball that was used and handled by players on the team they love or, just, one of the games great players. Im sure there are many other examples one could give but these are the reasons that come to my mind.
Because I love the game of baseball so much and because I have so many memories of being at and watching baseball games, when I think about whether I want a new ball or an old one it gets a little more complicated. I think about what might have happened to the old ball or what will happen to the new ball. I envision who will or has found joy in using or just having them.
When I hold a new ball in my hand I think of possibilities. I think of the fun I will have teaching my daughter how to play the wonderful game of baseball. I wonder if this particular ball will be hit for a home run or just tossed around in the yard. I imagine my daughter laughing as we toss it back and forth. I can almost see her running around the yard chasing after the ball or putting it on the tee so she can hit it. I reminisce about my first, brand new, baseball and all the fun I had with it. I remember just lying on my bed tossing it into the air and thinking about the fun I would have with it the next day. It makes me smile to think of all the possibilities a new baseball holds within it.
In the end though, all new baseballs become old baseballs. Underneath the dirt and scuffs all baseballs hold memories. They hold the memories of children running and laughing underneath the midsummer sun. They hold the memories of parents bringing their children to their first major league baseball game and how the child stares in awe at the ball they catch that was just hit by their hero. There are memories of brothers and sisters doing the one thing that brings them together to spend time with, just, one another. There are the memories of the wooden bats that hurl it through the air and the leather gloves that catch them. There are memories of utter disappointments and monumental accomplishments and then there are the simple memories of a father playing a simple game of catch with his daughter.
When I think about which ball I would rather have, it would have to be the new ball that I have used to teach my daughter with and made into an old ball. I feel this way because to me a baseball or even the game of baseball is more than just the actual tangent thing; it is the memories and the heart and soul that are put into it.
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Quote of the Journal: "I caught you a delicious bass...You wanna play me?
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