The Magic Begins Again

Alright, I'll admit it, I am a sucker. Today is an excellent day on my annual calendar, as Spring Training begins for my old hometown ball team, the Baltimore Orioles. Another sign that spring is soon to arrive has been reached, as the tradition of Spring Training leads into the anticipation of Opening Day, a sign, itself, of summer's impending arrival. I am sure I am not the only person who finds some joy and solace in this annual occurrence, yet I still feel like a sucker.

I feel like a sucker because Mark McGwire is now a coach with the St. Louis Cardinals. I feel like a sucker because guys who won fewer games than they lost last year were awarded with multi-million dollar contracts. I feel like a sucker because the Orioles will most likely finish this season just as far out of the running as they have in each of the last dozen years. I feel like a sucker because I know I care far more about those 25 strangers than they ever will or can about this one.

But, you know what? I don't mind feeling like a sucker in this case, because, maybe it's not a sucker that I feel like. It's more like a kid. I feel like a kid, who wants to oil up his glove and toss the ball around, a kid who wants to watch the big guys take on the best ball players in the world, a kid who thinks, "Maybe this will be the year."

And that's okay.

Seasonal Affective Disorder

Sure, the drizzle from last night and this morning froze into a smooth glaze on the Civic this morning, making for an invigorating workout as I scraped the windows clear like a mad man. Yes, as I sat in a PLC meeting this afternoon, I watched snowflakes swirl on the blustery updrafts outside the window. Absolutely, I was wishing I had a hathathat on my headheadhead as I stepped lively to the car this evening leaving work.

But, still, in the back of my mind is that little voice that tells me that the crocuses have already started their journey to the sun, that tells me the juncos have flown off, and the robins are out in force. I saw a pair of turkey vultures circling above the park yesterday. That is a clear sign that warmer days are coming, that spring is in the air.

And, just like it does for the kiddos, that little voice makes it awfully hard to concentrate.