If Suffering is Virtuous
April 14 2022
Eyes light up
words rush out
voices overlap.
Animated hands
do their own talking.
About those power bats, untested arms,
that rookie phenom
finally getting his chance.
Going on and on
about possibility, and promise.
A new season, a fresh start.
Because it's opening day,
and every team
is in first place.
Even ours.
When last season's struggles
were mere teething pains,
and if suffering is virtuous
then we've earned a top finish.
A winning team;
on paper, at least.
The anticipation
is as vital as the game itself,
the talk
as much a part of baseball
as hits and walks.
Which is why we listen on the radio.
Why the lush green field,
the fans, hooting and hollering,
the crisp crack of the bat
are more real when we imagine, instead of watch
on a big flat screen
in high def colour.
Why we take such delight
in the soft southern drawl
of the whiskey-voiced announcer,
the colour-man's quips
and comforting cliches.
A former big league catcher
with two bad knees,
a southpaw pitcher
who once threw hard.
And in the post-game palaver
the star player
explaining why they just fell short.
How tomorrow's another day
and it's a long season
and you can only play them
one game at a time.
How we feel just great
about our chances this year,
and how the chemistry is strong
both on and off the field.
And chemistry, we all know
can turn lead into gold.
While we, the loyal fans, can't wait.
After all
when the only difference
was a lucky bounce, a few inches,
then victory's
surely within reach.
The good fight
the game face.
Good losers,
consoling ourselves
we played hard,
and isn't that what really counts?
A silly self-indulgent poem. But heartfelt, nevertheless.
Interesting how it's always “we” when the team wins, and “they” when it's a loss!
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