narrative

For the most part, I have always performed well on just about anything and everything I have ever attempted. One might even go so far as to say that I had a niche for life in general. However, in the spring of 1999 I found something that I could neither conquer nor succeed upon which would change my life forever.

        “Aaron if you don’t… there’s no time to wait we have to go now” screamed my mother as a scrambled about looking for socks.

        “Mom stop yelling, I‘m coming, I’m coming” I said. “All that screaming isn’t gonna help me out at all ya know.”         Due to some miracle we finally made out of the house and started to leave for a baseball tournament, which I had been waiting to play in for months. I never really noticed how boring the riding in a car could be until I was stuck in one for five hours.

Nonetheless, when we eventually reached our destination it was hard to tell if I was really all that excited about the tournament or just happy to be out of the car.

        “Welcome to the 32nd Annual Best of The Best Florida Showcase”, said a man up in the booth. “All 18 and under players must report to field four within 20 minutes to receive their number and jersey.”         Standing there for a moment I had to take a few deep breaths so I wouldn’t start hyperventilating from the excitement that filled me. I couldn’t believe it, all my hard work and dedication in preparation was finally going to pay off. Here I was standing next some of the best players in the state and maybe even country, all thinking the same thing that I was about everyone else.

        As I made my way to the field and signed in the sun beat on my neck like a blazing inferno. I don’t really even think the whole magnitude of honor to play in this showcase had even hit me yet.

        I stepped onto the field and smelled the freshly cut grass and the orange clay, the same orange clay that had for so many years kept me working, sweating, even bleeding, in hope of this chance. I took one last look at the ground and then ran over to the dugout and got ready to get to work.

        I watched as all the players went by one by one in the drills and I could see that they didn’t have anything I didn’t which kept my hopes up. A few were maybe a little exceptional, but nothing I couldn’t handle.

        “Faullin, your up kid, so let’s see what u can do”, barked a deep voice across the field. “Alright son, here you go”.

        The ball flew through the air like a sphere of majesty and it seemed as if the whole world had stop and it was just me and the ball. It began the fall down slowly and I watched it like a scavenger on a deathwatch. It came down slowly, hit my glove, and bounced back up in the air. I dove out after it every last bit of energy I had went into retrieving the ball and I could almost…         “Mr. Faullin, Mr. Faullin, if u don’t stop sleeping in my class then I promise you there will be no way you’ll pass this course, young man”, harped an angry Ms. Lee. “Above all else your drooling on my desk which is absolutely disgusting I might add”         The entire class was staring at me and I didn’t know what to say or do. I saw the rest that weren’t staring laughing hysterically over my mishap.

        “Hey what can I say guys, you win some and you lose some” I said blushing in like of the recent events. “Ms. Lee, I’ll just catch you in detention tomorrow, ok?”         “Ok Aaron, you know where it’s at so see you there”, she said         The bell rang and I was never so happy to hear that sound in my entire life. For the firs time ever I was truly embarrassed.