Fear (Five Minute Friday)

Writing over a week late, but needed to get this post out there.

FEAR
I had the chance last week to laugh in the face of fear. Not everyone gets an opportunity to do that, but I did, and it was fabulous.

The Nationals hosted an event called ladies night on Thursday, June 18. I went with a bunch of my Nats friends and we had a blast. There was some chaos and confusion due to a ginormous thunderstorm, but my Nats ladies and I make the best of things - and hey, baseball, friends, and food? Nothing mixes better for me.

I added to the fun by debuting my "Nats dress" which I made. It turned out pretty well, I think - but I am not quitting my day job and taking up as a seamstress anytime soon.

We hung out at the reception. I danced with Abe Lincoln. And then while we were standing around chatting before the game, Mike, the Nats in-game entertainment host wandered by. We hollered at him and said hello. And then out of the blue, he looked at me and said "hey, do you want to throw out the first pitch tonight?"

I paused for a split second. And then I said YES. Because who says no to throwing out the first pitch at an MLB game? Not me. Why did he ask me? I'm pretty sure it was the dress. People talked about it all night. So score one for my dress.

I followed Mike and some other staff members down to the field. And then it set in. REALLY set in. Ummmm ... I have NEVER thrown a baseball before. Yes me, super fan extraordinare. So, what better way to debut than in front of 25,000 people?! HA HA. GULP.

What am I getting into?!

 What was I thinking? As we stood on the field waiting for "the time" I got to meet Mr. Lerner, team owner. He liked my dress. We took a selfie - because hey, if I am doing crazy things, why not ask for that too? My friend Michelle worked her way down close enough to the field to capture all this nonsense on camera. She's a gem. And you will see in the photos that I decided to shake off that fear - by laughing. because as my mom always says, if you can laugh about it later, why not laugh about it now?  I did a LOT of laughing that night.

My pitch-buddy was Blake Treinen. He's a relief pitcher for the Nationals. I gave him fair warning. He asked me if I was ready and I told him no. "I've never thrown before. ever. So I will never be ready, but that's ok, right?" He responded with "Just get it in the neighborhood and I will bail you out."

Blake was so kind - he made me forget about my nerves for a split second. And then I remembered about that 50 Cent pitch for the Mets. My thoughts went like this:
            Surely I can't be that bad, right?  Well, so what if I am? The worst thing that happens is the whole stadium laughs at me. Ok. My friends are up there, so that's 20 folks that will love me through the embarrassment. Good. I can do this. OH  MY WORD I CANNOT DO THIS.



Then it was time.
Step 1: don't mess up the line from home plate to first base. Ok, good, I stepped over that and didn't fall.

Step 2: find a good place to stand. I knew I couldn't throw all the way from the rubber . I wasn't even sure I could step up on the mound and not fall. I was wearing flip flops. (not throwing shoes in case you wondered). OK, found a place to stand. Close enough to the mound to not be wimping out, but on the grass. I thought that was safe.

Step 3: ask Blake if he's ready. He was. He smiled. GULP. GULP.

Step 4: wind up. HA HA. I had no idea what I was doing at this point. My hands were sweaty and I was petrified. I heard a cheer somewhere.  (Turns out that was all my awesome friends cheering my name. I LOVE YOU GUYS).

Step 5: throw. ok, I survived. WHEW. It bounced once. And then was "juuuuuuuuuuust a bit outside". Well through the left handed batters box. But in the general neighborhood of home plate. At that point I just laughed. and laughed.  All the way back to meet Blake for the ball signature (THANK YOU BLAKE) and the photo with Screech. My hands were still sweaty and I was still shaking, but I did it.

I threw a baseball. In front of 25,000 people. And I did not totally embarrass myself. And I laughed about it.

And you know what? It was FUN! And it is a night I will never forget. Ever.

(all photos courtesy of either my friend Michelle or the Washington Nationals. Used with permission).

Post is a part of Five Minute Friday. Hosted by Kate.