This spring I was at my son’s last t-ball game with my two young daughters. My husband was at a Cub Scout Pack Meeting so I was attending the game on my own. During the game I was constantly having to chase my girls, ages four and two, and bring them back to the field my son was playing on. As I got up for the umpteenth time I was reminded why I had vowed to never bring my girls to another t-ball game again.
After the game I had to collect my girls who had walked around the dirt track quite a distance from the field, but still in sight. As I started after them they began running further away. I was loaded down with an umbrella, blanket, purse, leftover treats, and water bottles. I sent my son to get his sisters and started off across the field to the car. My son gathered up the girls’ shoes that they had taken off and we were finally headed in the right direction. Then my son realized that he had dropped a shoe in the grass, which was at least 6 inches long. Half of the field had been mowed but the other half unfortunately was tall enough to hide a shoe. So my son and I stopped to search for the missing shoe while my daughter’s kept walking. Finding the shoe was slow going so I sent my son to watch his sisters while I kept looking.
The next time I looked up my youngest daughter was almost to the road. Since my son was just a short distance away I yelled for him to run and grab her hand. He moved a little faster, but I realized there was no way he was going to reach her in time. So as my stomach dropped and my heart began racing, I dropped everything, kicked off my sandals, and took of running. I reached her just before she ran into oncoming traffic.
A friend who’s son had been playing t-ball too rolled down the window in her car and commented that she didn’t know I could run so fast. Honestly, I didn’t know I could either. I have never been much of a runner, but I probably could have won at least a high-school track race that day. My husband attributed it to the adrenaline. I believe it was the thought of my daughter lying dead on the pavement that spurred me on.
With my daughter’s hand held tightly in mine we walked back across the field to where I had dropped our things. I made all three children sit in the grass while I finally found the missing shoe. As I started the car I sighed with relief that I was on the way home instead of the hospital. Hopefully none of the games next year will be as eventful as this one was.