The sun was just beginning to peek in Romy’s window when his eyes popped open. “It’s here!” he said to himself. “Today is finally here!”
It was almost a year ago when Romy’s dad had taken him to a big league game and since then, Romy had done nothing but talk baseball. He was only five years old at the time, but his dad told him when he turned six he could play tee-ball. At first, Romy didn’t want to hit the ball off of a tee; he wanted to play like the big players he had watched. But his dad explained that lots of big league players started with tee ball and that had changed Romy’s mind.
When his next birthday came, Romy’s dad took him to sign up for a team. That was two months ago and now the day had come. He couldn’t believe it. He dashed out of his bedroom door and down the stairs to his mom and dad’s room.
“Mom! Dad! Wake up! Wake up! We’re going to be late! Hurry!” His parents’ covers slowly began to move. “The sun is barely up,” groaned his dad sleepily. “We have plenty of time before it starts.”
But Romy didn’t hear him. He was already gone, running back upstairs to his room to put on his uniform. In no time, he had changed out of his pajamas, brushed his teeth, and combed his hair. By the time he was making his bed his mother came up.
“Boy, you really are excited! You’ve never gotten ready this fast.” Romy looked up at her and seeing that she was still in her night gown, he huffed, “Mom, can you pleeeaaase go get dressed?” She laughed and turned to go back downstairs.
It seemed like forever while Romy waited on his parents to get dressed, and fix breakfast, and eat, and do all those adult things they always do before going somewhere. But it was finally time to go. His dad grabbed the camera and Romy grabbed his glove and bat. They were off.
The opening day of tee-ball season meant a very crowded ballpark. There were people everywhere. Romy felt a little scared by so many people, but when his dad told him they weren’t all going to be watching just him, he felt a little better. His dad finally found a place to park and Romy and his parents made their way over to the field.
As they walked through the crowd, Romy was going over and over in his head the things he had been practicing for weeks. Imagining himself going through the motions of throwing, he counted to himself “One, Two, Three, Four.” He remembered what Coach Shawn had told him about swinging the bat and what he said about throwing the ball to first base if it came to him in the field. He was ready he told himself.
As they walked up to the field, Romy recognized two faces. “Nana! Papa!” he yelled and took off running toward them. “I didn’t know you were coming!” Romy said as he hugged them both.
“It was a surprise we asked your parents keep secret,” said his Nana.
“Are you going to watch me play?” asked Romy. “You didn’t think we would miss your first game did you?” replied his Papa.
Romy didn’t get to visit his nana and papa very often because they lived in a different state. Usually he would get to go stay with them every summer, but that was still months away. Romy knew they had driven a long way just to see him and that made him feel really good inside.
Romy was already excited before this, but now he could hardly focus. Coach Shawn called the team over to warm-up and take the field. “Romy, you’re going to play catcher today,” he said. Romy had only practiced in this position once before and as he took his position behind home plate, he felt really nervous about doing it again.
Before he could worry about it anymore, the game started. The whole game he tried as hard as he could to do what he had practiced. He kept his eye on the ball every time it was his turn to bat and made a good hit too. When the outfielders threw the ball to him, he made sure to get in front of it and caught it each time. He did so well, by the end of the game other parents were telling his parents what a great player he was.
Also by the end of the game, Romy had discovered he absolutely loved baseball (even though this was just tee-ball). After the last out and the game was over, Romy ran straight over to his nana and papa and said, “I’m going to be a baseball player when I grow up.” “Oh yeah?” his papa replied. “I’ll tell you what, if you work really hard and practice everyday, you’ll do just that. And the very first game you play in the big leagues, we’ll will be there to watch you.”
“You promise?” asked Romy. “Yep, I promise,” said Papa.
Romy was suddenly jerked back to reality when he heard his manager say, “Let’s go Romy! You’re the last one here. Everyone else is already on the field.”
As Romy sat in the clubhouse locker room staring at the wall, he thought back once more. This was it, the moment he had been practicing and waiting for his whole life. When he walked out on that field, he would be accomplishing the lifelong goal he had set for himself all those years ago. He could barely contain the excitement; he felt like a kid all over again. But as the memory of his first tee-ball game faded from his mind, he also felt a little sad.
His parents would be there of course, just like they had been for every single game he had ever played in, and he loved them so much for it; but it was his grandparents he was thinking of now. He knew his nana and papa hadn’t been well for a while now. They were over eighty years old and could hardly get out anymore.
But over the years they had made it to quite a few of his games. While he was in high school they traveled cross-country to watch him play in the all-star game. And when he played in the minor leagues, they had come more than a few times to watch him. But this would be his first time in the big leagues.
Shaking the memories off, he grabbed his glove and made his way to the field. The crowd was roaring as he stepped onto the freshly cut grass. As he jogged past his team’s dugout he glanced up to where his parents would be sitting. He almost fell when he realized he recognized the two faces sitting beside them.
There was Nana and Papa, with huge smiles on their faces holding a small sign. He could hardly read it so he ran closer.
When his eyes could make out the words, he read, “You didn’t think we would miss your first game did you?”
