So, on Saturday Michael and I got up bright and early and headed to the ball field to play in the annual co-ed softball tournament hosted by our local Little League.  When I first heard about it a couple months ago, I impulsively said, “Yeah!  Let’s do it!”  It sounded like fun, but in all honesty, the closer we got to the actual date, the more I started kicking myself.  I’ve never been athletic – though I grew up climbing trees and playing street baseball with my brothers and the neighborhood kids, at heart I’m a graceless, awkward nerd who gets terrible stage fright at the prospect of being center stage.  Plus, it’s been years – decades! – since I actually played any baseball.  I was so nervous in the days leading up to the softball tournament that I even had a dream a couple nights before that I showed up to the ball field in my slippers and humiliated myself!

Still, despite my nervousness, there was a part of me that was definitely excited about doing something out of my comfort zone – getting out there and being a part of it instead of hanging back and just watching other people.  Michael even bought me a glove and a bat, and we practiced out in the front yard and at the school yard – and discovered that I actually can catch, throw, and bat fairly decently.

Aside from a guy on our team saying “retard” and “retarded” several times to start things off (Michael very nicely explained to him why it’s hurtful and asked him to stop; the guy was very apologetic), the tournament ended up being a lot of fun.

There was a possibility of five games, but our team was eliminated after losing the first two games.  I got up to bat a total of four times – got one hit but was out at first base, and struck out the other three times.   I played right field both games, which was fine with me because it saw the least action, although several hard grounders came my way, and I actually got them and threw them in.  Michael did a lot better than I did, but then, he’s not a silly girl.

I’m definitely signing up to do this again next year!