I grew up in the heart of Texas, and how enjoyable it was. I loved Abilene and had a great childhood there as far as the settings go. In the household though, things were very different.
As a youngster, for the first few years of my life, I had a great life. My mother and father raised me in a wonderful Christian household. I was brought to church with them every week, never missing a day. My parents were both raised in the church so naturally they were going to do the same with me. Even at the age of three I remember playing in the nursery with other children. I remember going to Vacation Bible School and learning about stories in the Bible (mainly David and Goliath) even as a young child.
Everything changed when I was about 5 years old. When my mother switched jobs, it forced her out of the house every Sunday. Then my father decided to keep busy around the home while she was gone. We all stopped going to church, and there was an obvious rift between both of my parents. This led to a divorce three years layer.
When I'd ask my mother about them, she'd always promise me that everything was fine between the two of them. She'd even go so far as bringing my father to the house so that it'd appear they were still together (even though they'd always either argue or not speak to each other when he was here).
As they say, every cloud has a silver lining and there was one in my case. I would constantly lock myself in my room and listen to the radio when I was younger, and one day I happened upon a baseball game on the radio. I listened intently as I learned more about the game.
Every day, I'd listen to the Rangers on the radio during baseball season. I came to understand what a strikeout was, what a home run was, and what everything else meant. I'd even hear my father discussing the team with his friends, and Nolan Ryan became my favorite player on the team (he was my father's favorite too).
It became a ritual. My dad would come over, I didn't want to hear my parents arguing, so I'd stay in my room with the radio loud, listening to the Rangers. My mom eventually bought me a hat, and I'd wear it all over the place. The joy I'd feel when the team won a game!
As a kid, baseball was more to me than a game. It was more to me than numbers. It was more than WAR and ERA+ (some of you may get a kick out of that). It wasn't even just something I liked. It was something that took my mind away from everything else. It took my mind away from my parents fighting. It gave me something to look forward, not hearing my parents fight, but listening to my Rangers play.
As a youngster, for the first few years of my life, I had a great life. My mother and father raised me in a wonderful Christian household. I was brought to church with them every week, never missing a day. My parents were both raised in the church so naturally they were going to do the same with me. Even at the age of three I remember playing in the nursery with other children. I remember going to Vacation Bible School and learning about stories in the Bible (mainly David and Goliath) even as a young child.
Everything changed when I was about 5 years old. When my mother switched jobs, it forced her out of the house every Sunday. Then my father decided to keep busy around the home while she was gone. We all stopped going to church, and there was an obvious rift between both of my parents. This led to a divorce three years layer.
When I'd ask my mother about them, she'd always promise me that everything was fine between the two of them. She'd even go so far as bringing my father to the house so that it'd appear they were still together (even though they'd always either argue or not speak to each other when he was here).
As they say, every cloud has a silver lining and there was one in my case. I would constantly lock myself in my room and listen to the radio when I was younger, and one day I happened upon a baseball game on the radio. I listened intently as I learned more about the game.
Every day, I'd listen to the Rangers on the radio during baseball season. I came to understand what a strikeout was, what a home run was, and what everything else meant. I'd even hear my father discussing the team with his friends, and Nolan Ryan became my favorite player on the team (he was my father's favorite too).
It became a ritual. My dad would come over, I didn't want to hear my parents arguing, so I'd stay in my room with the radio loud, listening to the Rangers. My mom eventually bought me a hat, and I'd wear it all over the place. The joy I'd feel when the team won a game!
As a kid, baseball was more to me than a game. It was more to me than numbers. It was more than WAR and ERA+ (some of you may get a kick out of that). It wasn't even just something I liked. It was something that took my mind away from everything else. It took my mind away from my parents fighting. It gave me something to look forward, not hearing my parents fight, but listening to my Rangers play.
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