Tomorrow

I saw this post written by a father to a son and sat and bawled while reading it.

My husband wrote this morning to our son who is a senior in high school. He is going to college in the fall to play ball. This made me cry all day.............

A letter to my son,

Tomorrow……...tomorrow is a day that I have been dreading for the past 14 years. When you started playing baseball, tomorrow seemed like a lifetime away, but now it is here. I will be honest with you, I’m not ready for it, but I know you are. All I can think about is that little boy with the hat that was too big, the bat that was too long and the glove that totally engulfed your little hand. I remember the joy on your face every time you took the field. You wanted to play, rain or shine and if you made a mistake you can bet you had me out in the back yard or on a field somewhere working on correcting that mistake. We watched as a childhood fascination turned into a lifelong love. You were always so disappointed when a season was over, you just wanted to play. You went from t-ball, to coach pitch, to machine pitch, to kid pitch and you were never satisfied. Finally we made the decision to have you tryout for a competitive team. You played for the Thunder, Lightning, Rippers, Sharks, Cage Rats, and the Arena, and for you, travel ball was the best thing we could have done. It was expensive, there were long cars rides, lots hotel rooms and living out of a cooler became our normal but we wouldn’t have had it any other way. You pushed yourself, you set goals and failed, set them again and succeeded and then set them higher. Coaches, gave up on you. They told you your weren't good enough, but you proved them all wrong. People said we were silly for spending all that money on “baseball”, but we never regretted it even for a second. Then high school baseball began and we realized what you had been working towards. We realized where all that time and money went. We had been investing in your future and now we could finally start seeing it pay off. You busted your tail, worked hard to improve yourself and your teammates. Your hard work was rewarded with multiple scholarship offers and college coaches that believe in you and think you have the ability to help their team.

Tomorrow……...tomorrow you will put on that Sand Creek Scorpion uniform for the last time.

Tomorrow……...tomorrow you will step out on that field for the last time as a scorpion.

Tomorrow……...tomorrow your mom and I will cry, so be prepared. We will shed tears for many reasons but please know we will cry mainly because we are so very proud of you. A father could never be more proud of a son than I am of you.

Tomorrow……..enjoy yourself, enjoy your time on that field, enjoy your teammates, but most of all remember that little kid and play with the passion and love that little boy had.

Tomorrow……….Wyatt, tomorrow came way too fast.

It is a reminder to me that this season in our lives will not last forever. That someday will be my tomorrow. 

In the Spring of 2016 Royce started playing T-ball in the Raymore Rec league we were blessed from day one for Andy Hilton was chosen to be his coach. Andy is well versed in baseball and was a player himself. He was taking the time to coach these young boys and girls out of the goodness of his heart.  Andy's son was on the team and was a year older than Royce. As the first season went on Andy encouraged and pushed Royce. He made it clear he saw talent in him and that gave Royce the confidence that he needed to excel. Andy more than likely has no idea how influential he was on Royce but at one point he said that he needed to be playing league ball and that we needed to go ahead and move him up teams and play with the boys in the fall that were planning to play machine pitch. So we took his advice and moved with Andy's boy onto a machine pitch league team.

That first year of competitive baseball was a year (2016) of great success for Royce. He played for Hamby and the Raymore Rebels in the South Metro League. This would be an 8U A team. As a 7-year-old playing up, there were challenges. The coaches Brent Hamby and Ryan Bult needed a metal that year for dealing with Royce's immaturely and occasional breakdowns. He cried several times when his play wasn't up to his expectations but these coaches loved him through it. They encouraged him both as a player but also encouraged him in his love for the game. I know without a doubt those coaches loved him like a son!

The year was topped off by a personal bid for Royce in the USSSA Missouri Kansas All-State Showcase game. This was a huge highlight for Royce and Kaleb to be chosen to attend this game. There are 40,000 boys who play competitive baseball in Missouri and Kansas. The Showcase game is for the top 800 players. Royce had an absolute blast at this game. The boys both were able to experience playing with the best players from this area and were able to match their talents with them.

2017 brought with it a new team name, but the same family of players and parents. The Daredevils was to be the name on the jersey. Hamby and Bult where the leaders and a 9UAA in the South Metro league was the plan for the season. The boys greatly enjoyed their year together and many sharpened their skills as the year went on. The team had some struggles this year and possibly some growing pains. Royce continued to develop as a player and expand his love for the game. We encouraged him to try other sports but his heart lies in baseball. I think this was the season for a personal struggle for me. My struggle to keep him off the pitcher's mound and his struggle to want to pitch so badly. As you can see he won and so it all began.

Fall of 2017 was a rough patch in the baseball road for us. We found ourselves without a team that fit us. We tried out for a few teams and just didn't find a fit for him as an athlete and us as a family. After not making a UAAA team, we decided upon the BC Hass team. (Building Champions). This team was in the Blue Valley League and we played the equivalent of 9U AA. The coaches, parents, and athletes on the team never felt like a fit. Royce was very discouraged and the team didn't do well at all. Royce was asked to pitch in almost every clutch situation and he excelled. He refused to allow the lack of talent on the team be a deterrent for him. But as the season lagged on so did his desire to play with them. By Dec he had decided to take a season off. He just wasn't sure if this was a good fit at all.

Mike and I encouraged him to try out for a new team in 2018, so in January of 2018 Royce went to a tryout at Mac and Seitz for their 9u Major team. The coach offered him a spot on the team the first tryout and we were all so excited. This new team brings about challenges of its own. They have played for several years together and Royce has to work his way from the bottom of every list. He is the last in the batting order and he is playing left field most of the time. After playing on all the other teams and always being infield this is a tough pill to swallow. They started their first tournament against 10AA kids and the boys did excellently. They ended up second in the tournament. Royce did his part by hitting 3 doubles in the pool play games and being a threat every time he got up to bat. He had done some closer pitching and continues to work his way up the order.

I don't know what this season or this team hold for him, what I do know is his sisters, his dad and I are enjoying watching #6 every step of the way. I hope someday he understand how much of a joy this time is in our lives and how much we love him.  So I am relishing every moment cause I know.. .

tomorrow will eventually come.

TO BE CONTINUED....