THE BATTLE
THE PITCHER HAS THE SIGN FROM THE CATCHER. He shuffled the ball nervously in his glove feeling for the perfect grip. He winds up and fires a cut seam fast ball. The batter just called up from the minors felt his knee buckle as he heard the ball pop when it hit the catcher’s glove. Strike one announces the umpire to the capacity crowd cheering the pitcher on. You see this was no ordinary pitcher. This one had Cy Young written all over him. The batter a journeyman nobody seemed to want. He had played for almost every team in the American league.
A shot was fired from a gun by a four year old child into his five-year-old brother critically wounding him. The reason the child had the gun is all to obvious and common and seem unimportant as long as his brother clung to life.
Nuclear bombs were being tested by nations that gelt their nationhood was threatened by others who have the bomb. That followed with great exultation in the nation that worshipped the bomb.
A province announces its intention to separate from Canada on the grounds they are French and only they truly respect democracy and truth. The only real truths are they have always hated the English and are still fighting the demons left from Frances former colonial hold. They are still stuck between 19th century dreams of a French empire and the 21st century reality that there are no room for empires only people helping people whether or not they speak English or Chinese or Italian even French.
The pitcher surveys the batter, knowing all his weaknesses at the plate and shakes off the catchers first suggestion and his second suggestion. The pitcher wants to throw another fastball. Finally the sign is given and accepted. The pitcher winds up and fires a harder cut seam fastball high and tight that the batter barely sees the ball and dives out of the way. Ball one bellows the umpire. The capacity crowd boos with displeasure for the umpire who clearly missed the batters swing.
The five-year-old boy is rushed by paramedics to Mercy Hospital where the family has gathered praying for those same mercies from a dozen beautified souls willing this child to life as best they know. The person who owned the gun. Is not at the hospital at this critical time because he is being questioned by police at how this could have happened as if they hadn’t heard it all before? The officers seem on pilot control. The shooting team puts on their game face and repeats the questions they’ve asked thousands of times to the same answer thousands of times. Outside spectators appear and argue a point counter point over gun laws. Guns don’t kill people, people kill people. Did that four-year-old really mean to shoot his five-year-old brother maybe to death? I think that guns do kill people. Maybe it should be responsible people know how to handle their guns and accidents like these would never happen but this happens to responsible caring people every day so is there a chance an uncaring person could harm you if he had a gun. Maybe guns are like Cancer, when a tumour gets addicted to you it can go berserk till it feeds off of you till you starve not from hunger but from life. Perhaps like so many addictions and illnesses forget about the symptom and treat the source.
Alcohol doesn’t get people drunk, but people get people drunk. Maybe it’s actually the alcohol. Maybe a person that has to drink alcohol every day so they can look sober and function to the best of his addicted ability because it’s not the alcohol it’s the person.
Smokers have rights too. What kind of world is this when I can’t smoke around people with asthma allergies or just have this insane delusion the second hand smoke can kill people. Drugs don’t kill people kill people. Well fine the answer to this one. Your neighbour who has been a fine citizen as far as anyone can see come hone one day after being caught at work for having one to many drinks and
was fired, He drank more then his limit because he just learned he had lung cancer
The count is one and one. The pitcher throws his infamous knuckle curve that has crossed up many a batter waiting for his blistering fastball. The batter swings awkwardly but still manages to get a piece of the ball and fouls it off. A small victory. Strike two the umpire motions. The batter steps out of the batter’s box to a reliever some tension praying the coach will hive him a sign he can use. He looks in vain as the signs being flashed to him is all empty like the heads they’re coming from. They have no idea of the real world outside. That pitcher can’t save anybody. The umpire is making no important decisions.
As the pitcher takes the sign for another fastball, the surgeon who had worked on the five-year-old boy fixes his eyes on the mother of the boy. And he says “You certainly have a fighter and I hope that I do not regret saying this, but I believe your son is going to make it.” The pitcher throws his hardest pitch of the night. The batter swings and connects. He hit the sweet spot and the ball sails and sails the crowd is hushed in shock as the ball clears the fences. The batter is in shock. He stumbles on his way to first base but makes it around the bases and into the arms of his teammates who have just been crowned pennant champions. Which brings us to the moral of this rant. Just remember no matter how high the odds or how tough the situation every once in a while the little guy wins.
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