I remember as
a kid
my mother gave my copy
of Frank Waldman's
"Bonus Pitcher"
to the school book fair
I had to buy it back
for a quarter
the book told the tale
of how a "bonus baby" won the respect of
those who rejected him at first
Also, it told the tale
of the Brooklyn Dodgers
defeating the Boston Red Sox
in a World Series
I have re - read the book
during hard moments in my life
Baseball defines
America
Our national pastime
is also enshrined
in the movie
"Field of Dreams"
As for myself - I only played catcher
for a short while in the Little Leagues
and cried as a kid when the Mets lost (as they usually did in
the early days)
I heard stories of ballplayers from years ago
and they still reverberate in my
in my mind
Older now - the best I could do now
is whack some softballs at the batting cages
Time wears us all down
Baseball diamonds still shine brightly
in the minds of most Americans
Categories:
softballs, baseball,
Form: Blank verse
I remember
as a kid
that my mother gave my copy of Frank Waldman's "Bonus Pitcher" to the book fair
I had to buy it back for a quarter
The book told the tale
of how a "bonus baby" won the respect
of those who resented him at first
Also, it told the tale
of the Boston Red sox
defeating the Brooklyn Dodgers in the World series
I have re - read the book during dark times in my life
Baseball defines America
Our national pastime is also enshrined in the movie
"Field of Dreams"
As for myself - I only played catcher in the Little League for a short while and
cried when the Mets lost (as they usually did in their early years)
I have heard stories of NY ballplayers from years ago
and they still
reverberate in my mind
Older now - the best I can do now would be to whack some softballs from a
batting cage machine
Time wears us all down
The baseball diamond still shines green in our mind's eye!
Categories:
softballs, baseball,
Form: Concrete
“yeah man, call out
‘aye laddie’ to claim the
ball.” we laughed, and he
hit a grounder, followed by a
pop fly, followed by another
grounder, all thrown back to
the proximity of the pitcher.
“what’s it gonna be like tomorrow?”
I asked. “In the 70s...I haven't hit
since last spring.” Some clouds
loomed overhead and my hairs stood
on end. He hit a short one and paused,
“What are your dinner plans? I
got a few pizzas in the freezer.”
“Wow, that’ll be great weather for the
frisbee tournament then.” The ball
tuckered out of my glove. Dammnit.
He cranked out another one, and the guy
out left managed to haul it in,
“Aye laddie!” The sun peaked out
a bit, and I saw where the clouds
would end for a time. “Aye laddie!”
That one, I caught.
Reds and oranges over the trees, and
none of us believed in sun sets.
Categories:
softballs, baseball, friendship, fun, games,
Form: Free verse